Differences between the two.
What is a serial killer? A serial killer is a person who attacks and kills victims one by one in a series of incidents. Some characteristics of a serial killer is that they have a minimum of three to four victims, usually with a “cooling off period” in between. The killer usually is likely to victimize a stranger than they are to victimize someone that they know. The serial killer has a sadistic urge to dominate there victims, they do not profit, except for psychological satisfaction. The serial killer usually looks for victims that are vulnerable. The majority of serial killers are white males, in there late 20’s to early 30’s, but some have been known to be a lot older. Serial killers usually come from lower to middle class family backgrounds and they usually have at least an average intelligence.
There are two types of serial killers, the psychotic and the psychopath. The psychotic serial killer is one who is legally insane, they cannot tell the difference between right and wrong, they may hear voices, see visions and sometimes may have hallucinations prior to committing the murders. “The son of Sam” aka David Berkowitz is a great example of a psychotic serial killer. The second type of serial killer is the psychopathic serial killer. The psychopathic serial killer does not suffer from hallucinations, they know the difference between right and wrong, and are in touch with reality, they just do not care what the are doing is not right. Psychopathic serial killers lack one very important trait and that is that they do not have a conscience, or that there conscience is too weak to stop the violent behavior. A psychopathic serial killer does not feel any guilt, nor are they sorry for there actions.
There are numerous theories as to whether a person is born with the predisposition to kill; some theories suggest that the psychopath is a product of his/her environment. It is possible that it is a combination of both genetics and the person’s environment. The worst part of a psychopathic serial killer is his/her ability to blend in with their environment. They will act normal, but underneath there persona, lies two uncontrollable traits; sexual abnormality and a consuming need for power. The killing satisfies both the ultimate control over life and death. Simply, killing gives them pleasure, they will because they want to and because they enjoy doing so. The only thing that stops a serial killer from committing these types of killings is either they are arrested or they die.