Psychologist reveals ‘ingredient list’ of experiences that turn people into serial killers, including voyeurism, childhood trauma and bad parenting
- Emma Kenny, who specializes in victimology, appeared today on This Morning.
- It is explained that serial killers are born psychopaths, but other experiences become killers
- Said voyeurism and “really bad parenting”, both too liberal and too strict, may be factors
A leading psychologist has revealed the “ingredient list” of experiences that turn people into serial killers, including bad parenting, childhood trauma and the birth of a psychopath.
Victimology specialist Emma Kenny appeared on This Morning today to speak with Philip Schofield and Alison Hammond ahead of her new show, The Serial Killer Next Door, where she discusses how to spot the traits of serial killers and what they look for in victims. .
The expert explained that there is a 0.00039% chance of being killed by a serial killer and that “all serial killers are born psychopaths”, but the combination of early trauma makes them deadly killers.
Victimology specialist Emma Kenny appeared on This Morning today to speak with Philip Schofield and Alison Hammond ahead of her new show, The Serial Killer Next Door, where she discusses how to spot the traits of serial killers and what they look for in victims. .
“We can use brain scan technology and we can see problems, we can see problems with the limbic system, we can see problems with the ventromedial prefrontal cortex and the amygdala, the area of emotion regulation, social experience and knowing how to behave well, but trauma seems to play a huge role in this.
“So, if someone had a really traumatic experience as a child, most of them will become incredibly compassionate people, but for some, it seems like there is this list of possible ingredients, and if you activate them all, there is potential trauma, involvement in criminal activity. . behavior.
“Really bad parents or one very disciplined and the other very liberal can influence criminal behavior.
“Tom’s peeping behavior and voyeurism, stalking, all these contingencies and those experiences that are life experiences. These are childish things that would influence you, shape you or change you, you can create them.
The expert explained that there is a 0.00039% chance of being killed by a serial killer and that “all serial killers are born psychopaths”, but the combination of early trauma makes them deadly killers.
Psychopaths exhibit different traits depending on their disorder, but common features include superficial charm, grandiose self-image, need for stimulation and impulsivity, pathological lying, the ability to manipulate others, and a lack of remorse and empathy.
As a rule, the “emotions” of psychopaths are shallow and short-lived, and their manifestation has a manipulative ulterior motive.
This explains why they can be so selfish and why they are three times more likely to commit violent crimes.
Asked by Philip if people can be born serial killers, he added: “I believe so. I think a lot of people do.
“You can be born a psychopath. And then I think that over time, with a certain probability, all these activating factors led them all to this tipping point.
Asked by Philip if people can be born serial killers, he added: “I believe so. I think a lot of people do.
“I definitely think that if you think about evolution, psychopathic serial killers would be very useful.
“At some point, if you were a king and wanted someone to come out and kill with no conscience. You don’t want people to fall apart emotionally, that would be helpful.
She added: “It’s scary that one percent of the population would be diagnosed as a psychopath, but if you want to know what’s really scary, 20 percent in corporate leadership positions are psychopaths.”
“So, anyone who has been horribly bullied has probably been bullied by a psychopath.
“So not all psychopaths obviously go for serial killers, but almost all serial killers are definitely psychopaths.