... Who is Ted Bundy, what makes him do things he does or has done? The questions not just posed at Mr. Bundy but to anyone that commits crimes of this nature or serious crimes in general. How can a college educated man with aspirations of being the Governor of Washington State, a man who by those that knew him believed that he could be the Governor, a man by those same people who saw him as a loyal friend and charming. This is man who study psychology and was very well liked by his professors. This is a man that by any right is no different than the well liked neighbor down the street or the middle school teacher your children love or just another young republican looking at their future in politics down the road after graduation. But this man is different, this man suffers not on the outside but on the inside. He mental can separate what is right and wrong but can’t control is urges as a child nor can he control the urges he has a young adult or even when he is a grown man. No, this man is not a man at all, no he is not the role model to look up to or strive to be, no he is the monster that does not hide in the shadows he is the monster that stands face to face with you smiles and shakes yours hand then as you look into his eyes you believe him and then before you know it you are trapped and helpless and without any hope of survival, the monster has you. The monster in plain clothes as taken you and when it is over we will put the monster in the cage inside his mind...
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...individual environment and the people within it. It’s entirely possible to be born with traits that give us the potential to be evil. In William Harms article “Psychopaths are not Neurally Equipped to have Concern for Others” he reports a study done by University of Chicago that took 80 prisoners between ages 18 and 50 and tested for levels of psychopathy using standard measures. The results showed: The participants in the high psychopathy group exhibited significantly less activation in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex, lateral orbitofrontal cortex, amygdala and periaqueductal gray parts of the brain, but more activity in the striatum and the insula when compared to control participants. This latter region is important for monitoring ongoing behavior, estimating consequences and incorporating emotional learning into moral decision-making, and plays a fundamental role in empathic concern and valuing the well-being of others(Harms, 2013). The study showed that the parts of the brain needed to give us the ability to have moral-decision making and have compassion for others was significantly more absent in those who had high levels of psychopathy. In other words, the conducted study showed that it’s possible to be born with traits (or the lack of certain traits) that don’t give the necessary understanding to differentiate what actions are evil and unimaginable to...
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...the author of four bestsellers, Them: Adventures with Extremists, The Men Who Stare at Goats, The Psychopath Test, and Lost at Sea: The Jon Ronson Mysteries. In an interview, Ronson stated his reason why he wrote The Psychopath Test, “I wanted to write a book about madness because it has always been—I think— the elephant in the room of my other books. Do the people I write about behave the strange ways they do because madness is the engine that powers them? I felt I needed to address this question head-on. Is madness the force that makes the world go around?” The Psychopath Test: A Journey through the Madness Industry starts out with a mystery. A group of the world’s top researchers are plagued by an elaborate riddle, set in a series of curiously handmade books, and Ronson is called upon to investigate. He is of course, an established London writer, and by this time, fairly well-known for his taste in investigative journalism. Ronson is sucked into the mystery immediately, with an obsessive, infectious fervor. It’s through the riddle Ronson was introduced to, when he unwittingly stumbles into the world of psychopaths. Once solved, he finds that the world is populated by a group of people he had never truly examined—people that act without empathic reason and wreak havoc on the world simply because they can. This realization is what sparks the hunt for psychopaths and what makes this book such a captivating read. He moves from influential psychologists who teach him how to detect...
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...WR-123 Research Paper NOT ALL MONSTERS ARE MAKE BELIEVE - A CASE STUDY ON THEODORE R. BUNDY What causes someone to become a serial killer? Is there something inherently evil about them that emerge as they age, or are they born that way? Do they become that way because of their upbringing? Most Psychologists feel that it is a combination of all these things that determine the psychosis exhibited by serial killers. (www.psychology.org/links) Psychologists have looked into the darkest recesses of human behavior, to try to figure out how and why people commit such gruesome and brutal atrocities against their fellow human beings. One of the best cases of documented psychopathic behavior is that of Theodore R. Bundy. On November 24, 1946 Theodore Robert Cowell (aka Ted Bundy) was born. His mother was a single young woman who decided the best course of action was to move back home to have her parents help her raise her son; as in the 40’s it was not acceptable for a young single woman to have a child out of wedlock. Until the age of four, Ted believed that his mother was his older sister, and grandparents were his mother and father. (Rule, A: The Stranger Beside Me) The signs that something was dreadfully wrong with Ted began to show themselves very early in his childhood. When Ted was barely three years old, one of his Aunt’s stayed the night with the family. The Aunt woke up in the early morning hours to find her young nephew Ted, lifting her blankets...
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...Carmen Murillo English 201A Wiebe November 28, 2015 Are Serial Killers Created or Born? There are people out there who kill for the sake of pleasure. There aren't many are but they are out there. In our society we know them as serial killers. A serial killer by definition is a person who has killed more than three people at different times. There has been an ongoing debate about whether the serial killers are naturally born, murderous creatures, or if there has been certain circumstances throughout their lives which turn them to the monsters that the are. The mind of a serial killer all most never compares to another serial killer's mind, but one thing that they have in common is that they do not have a “normal” or “healthy” state of mind....
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...What Makes Serial Killers Kill Naomi R. Bowles Valley College Author’s Note Written for Psychology: taught by Isaac Hatley What Makes Serial Killers Kill Looking back through the years there have been many serial killers. There are many throughout the country and even many that have killed in West Virginia. Many psychologists have tried to study serial killers and answer why serial killers kill and also if serial killers suffer from some type of psychological disorder. Doing my research I find that this is a task that is very hard to do. It is difficult to determine possibly because many serial killers turn out to be the people who you would least likely suspect. In this paper I will take a look as to whether serial killers may suffer from psychopathy. I will also attempt to focus on one particular serial killer – Dennis Rader – BTK. Psychology Of A Killer Many psychologists believe that psychological disorders are the only reason for the killings while other psychologists believe that the reason is the environment that they are raised in and/or are currently in. Seeking help when a person is young, if sadistic or animal cruelty behavior is caught early by their caregiver, can reduce the factors of becoming a serial killer. There also may be factors with nature and nurture and how that may have affected them in the creation of a future serial killer. According to my research, the most successful serial killers are people who blend into society who possibly could be a...
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...characterized by a lack of remorse, empathy, anxiety, and other social emotions; the use of deceit and manipulation; and impulsive thrill seeking. (Wade 383) According to the article “What ‘Psychopath’ Means”, it is stated that 25% of inmates in prison meet the criteria to be diagnosed as a psychopath. With so many criminals diagnosed as psychopaths can serial killers be classified as psychopaths and therefore “excused” for the crimes they commit? Many researchers agree that serial killers tend to lack empathy, compassion, and crave power. Serial killers have been an interesting topic throughout history. There are the infamous serial killers like Charles Manson, Ted Bundy, Jack the Ripper, etc. (Encyclopedia) According to Richard Whittington’s journal “The Serial Killer Phenomenon,” “A large number of serial killers have such characteristics in common, as being essentially a loner, experiencing difficulty with relationships, and showing, psychopathically, neither empathy, conscience, nor remorse, only arrogance.” Whittington believes that most serial killers are outsiders or “rejects”, but many serial killers display normal characteristics which is why it may come as a surprise to friends and family that their loved one is indeed a killer. If serial killers come in all shapes and sizes, than what are the common characteristics that they all seem to share? Whittington states, “the power to dominate… is the driving force behind the practice of torture common to so many serial killers...
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...On April 20, 1999, two high school seniors, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, put the fear of God into Columbine High School and Jefferson County, Colorado. Eric and Dylan were two high school senior who were trying to fit into the cool crowd and be poplar in school. Regretfully, like many teenagers now days, they were picked on and bullied by their classmates. Most students who were picked on and bullied would eventually overcome this obstacle but Eric and Dylan were unable to. Ultimately, they took their revenge out on all those at Columbine High School. One will never be able to understand why such tragedy occurred. People have looked at Eric’s and Dylan’s make up and how they connected to get a glimpse into how such a tragedy could take...
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...VOLUME EDITOR S. WALLER is an Associate Professor of Philosophy at Montana State University Bozeman. Her areas of research are philosophy of neurology, philosophy of cognitive ethology (especially dolphins, wolves, and coyotes), and philosophy of mind, specifically the parts of the mind we disavow. SERIES EDITOR FRITZ ALLHOFF is an Assistant Professor in the Philosophy Department at Western Michigan University, as well as a Senior Research Fellow at the Australian National University’s Centre for Applied Philosophy and Public Ethics. In addition to editing the Philosophy for Everyone series, Allhoff is the volume editor or co-editor for several titles, including Wine & Philosophy (Wiley-Blackwell, 2007), Whiskey & Philosophy (with Marcus P. Adams, Wiley, 2009), and Food & Philosophy (with Dave Monroe,Wiley-Blackwell, 2007). P H I L O S O P H Y F O R E V E RYO N E Series editor: Fritz Allhoff Not so much a subject matter, philosophy is a way of thinking.Thinking not just about the Big Questions, but about little ones too.This series invites everyone to ponder things they care about, big or small, significant, serious … or just curious. Running & Philosophy: A Marathon for the Mind Edited by Michael W. Austin Wine & Philosophy: A Symposium on Thinking and Drinking Edited by Fritz Allhoff Food & Philosophy: Eat,Think and Be Merry Edited by Fritz Allhoff and Dave Monroe Beer & Philosophy: The Unexamined Beer Isn’t Worth Drinking Edited by Steven D. Hales Whiskey & Philosophy:...
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...epidemic due to harsh chemicals that one is exposed to on an everyday basis. The synthetic chemicals are not only causing cancers but birth defects and other toxic mishaps as well. Animals are born with defects and a child was born without eyes. The documentary explains that a corporation is psychotic If you're looking at the corporation as a person. The corporation is said to have all the characteristics of a psychopath. The people that are part of the corporation such as stockholders, workers, and Executives all have moral responsibility within a corporation. The CEO of Goodyear says that his job is very stressful and that he does not have complete control (Sam g) Since 1990 Goodyear has laid off over 20,000 employees and closed 8 plants. He explains that it's a decision that he never likes to make. Society views CEOs and other important people of corporations monsters of their institution, when in fact they can be completely opposite. Decision-makers like CEOs can be in fact,very good people. CEO Ray Anderson of interface had several important key points of what a corporation is made of. Ray Anderson mentions that every living system is in decline And that we are leaving a diminishing environment for our grandchildren's...
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...Gary Leon Ridgway was born in Salt Lake City, Utah and after a string of killings that extended roughly 20 years he was dubbed, by local police, as the Green River Killer. He had admitted to killing over 90 prostitutes and had “lost count because it was so many”. Despite his IQ of 82, he had this serial killing down to a science and evaded police for quite sometime before a DNA test eventually convicted him of a murder and tied him to the whole string of murders that he had committed over the past decade. One has to ask themselves, “What makes a person such a monster?”, in this paper I will attempt to explain what may or may not have contributed to these horrific murders. However it is important to keep in mind that these are theories and not actual factual explanations for these acts of violence. Neurosis is defined as various forms of mental disorders of less violent nature. Now you think how could I have chosen this, “less violent behavior”, when the man killed prostitutes by strangling them, one of the more violent things a person is capable of. I chose it because it includes anxiety disorders which I believe Ridgway must have had that stemmed into his adult life, I based this theory off the fact that his mother would embarrass him in front of family and friends because he had a bed wetting problem later into life than most. Also the list of disorders that neurosis had, one stood out to me, Post traumatic stress disorder or PTS. He did serve in the military during Vietnam...
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...People say many different things create serial killers, some believe society breaks them down, but others argue that mental illness is the only reason that these monsters turn to cruelty and insanity. Psychologists, criminologists, and scientists searched to answer the question of why serial killers commit these mass killings and how they became such violent humans. What is left are two ideas, are serial killers born with predetermined genes/mental illness that plays an integral part in creating their homicidal tendencies or do psycho killers become murderous through their surroundings and society as children? It is important to understand how killers become such vicious individuals in order to help stop the influences that cause these monster....
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...PSYCHOPATHS IN POWER: THE COLLAPSE OF THE AFRICAN DREAM IN A PLAY OF GIANTS Olusegun Adekoya Department of English Obafemi Awolowo University Ile-Ife Nigeria oadekoya2@yahoo.com AN ABSTRACT A critical investigation of Wole Soyinka’s A Play of Giants, the paper discusses what the playwright himself calls the Aminian theme, that is, African leaders’ obsession with power, a seductive drive that breeds moral corruption, dictatorship, delusions, economic distortions and ruination, megalomania, perversion and desecration of all that is good in African traditions, and the evaporation of all the dreams of greatness, of nationalism, liberation from colonial thraldom, disease, ignorance and poverty, and of pan-Africanism nursed in the heady days of Independence celebrations. The four despots caricatured in the play are Field-Marshal Kamini (late Idi Amin, deposed president of Uganda), Emperor Kasco (Jean-Bedel Bokassa, former Emperor of the Central African Republic), Benefacio Gunema (late President Macias Nguema of Equatorial Guinea), and General Barra Tuboum (late President Mobutu Sese Seko of Zaire, now the Democratic Republic of Congo). They are in New York to attend the General Assembly of the United Nations. In response to the Secretary-General’s request for a work of art representative of each member nation’s culture, say, a miniaturized bust of the president, they sit for a life-size group sculpture on Kamini’s suggestion and in what appears to be a vivid demonstration of the old...
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...6:30-9:20 Reflection #1 February 11, 2013 Reflection#1 Socialization is in which people learn the attitudes, values, and behaviors appropriate for members of a particular culture. The Role of Socialization The question was asked “What makes us who we are”? First of all many questions came to mind with that question. For example, are we genetically bad? Or is it our upbringing? Maybe a bit of both, maybe some people are naturally bad but their upbringing can influence this further. Our genes give us potentials for example; two addicts will give birth to a potential addict. Our upbringings give us our values. Two thieves will probably raise another thief. Sometimes people want to make a change though, I strongly disagree with two thieves raising another thief, and because many people throughout history have risen out of the gutter they were born in, and even dedicated their lives to help others in the same situations. We certainly inherit traits from our parents, don’t get me wrong, but we have the possibility to choose the right way over the wrong as far as it is in our power. There is no such thing as people who are born badly. The monsters we hear about like serial killers, rapists, etc. are usually people with mental illnesses, or psychopaths. Have you ever thought about the fact that some highly respected people in our society are the biggest criminals of all? Agents of socialization Family is the most important agent of socialization in the U.S. Family is the part...
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...say I am.” Some people might think that Singer is just out of his mind, but I think he was angering the reader by making harsh accusations on purpose. Singer opens his essay with a ridiculous story from a film about a fictional woman named Dora. In the story, Dora is a “retired schoolteacher who makes ends meet by sitting at the station writing letters for illiterate people.” First off, how could anyone make enough money to live comfortably like that? She ends up selling a homeless boy to what she is told to be a “wealthy family.” Her neighbor somehow knows that this is not the case, that the boy will be put to death and his organs sold. Second of all, how does the neighbor know this? This accusation is not explained. Dora then goes home with her brand new television, feels guilty, and takes the boy back. Why would Dora do this without further research? She has no proof other than passing words of her neighbor that he will be killed. Perhaps in the film, this is explained, but Singer does not elaborate further on this subject. He just assumes that this is the case, that the boy will be killed, and that Dora is a fool for not knowing this sooner. He then compares the unspeakable: “what is the ethical distinction,” he begins, “between a Brazilian who sells a homeless child to...
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