Theses and Dissertations
Date of Award
2024
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy in Education
Department
Abraham S. Fischler College of Education and School of Criminal Justice
Advisor
Grace Telesco
Committee Member
Marcelo Castro
Committee Member
Terry Leary
Keywords
Adversity, Homicide, Mass, Serial, Spree
Abstract
The applied dissertation compares the lifestyle and behavioral characteristics of mass, serial, and spree murderers. Historically, studies have focused on serial murder according to the perpetrator's typology or indicators at the crime scene. The current topics of research lack a comparison of these classifications. While the classification and described typologies are essential for academic and investigative purposes, understanding the impactful lifestyle factors of these perpetrators may also serve as an essential factor in predictive analysis, victimology, and the motive behind their heinous crimes.
The researcher collected data on the classifications for each type of multiple homicide perpetrator: mass, serial, and spree. The researcher delineated the groups down further by choosing those that fit into the classic definitions described by the Federal Bureau of Investigations. The variables were analyzed after being chosen from those available in the Radford/FGCU Serial Killer Database. All variables and characteristics were downloaded from the identified database. The characteristics included education, family dynamics, abuse, overkill, mental health illness, and the behaviors defined by Macdonald’s triad.
The analysis compared the rates of adversity and personal factors across the three classifications of multiple homicide perpetrators. Examination of the variables showed that all of the classifications suffer adversities to different degrees. The analysis determined that the multiple homicide perpetrators in this study suffered from adverse family dynamics of being raised in households that lacked two parents at higher rates than the national average. The study sample also failed to obtain a high school diploma or its equivalent at higher rates than the national average. The serial killer classification also suffered higher rates of head injury, mental health illness diagnosis, and treatment time in a mental health facility. The analysis also showed that the classifications of spree and serial were the only ones to record all three types of specified abuse analyzed in the current study. Adversities, lack of education, and family dysfunction shape the character of these offenders.
NSUWorks Citation
Lucy M. Papp. 2024. Examination of the Differences and Similarities in the Classification of Multiple Homicide Perpetrators. Doctoral dissertation. Nova Southeastern University. Retrieved from NSUWorks, Abraham S. Fischler College of Education and School of Criminal Justice. (650)
https://nsuworks.nova.edu/fse_etd/650.