Motivations Behind Murder

 

Adamary Lopez

Professor Montoya

English 102

24 April 2025

What are the psychological motivations behind someone committing murder?

Murder is one of the worst things someone can do, but calling someone “evil” doesn’t tell the whole story. What pushes a person to kill often comes from something deeper, something psychological. In many cases, murder isn’t random or impulsive, it’s the result of long term emotional, mental, or environmental influences. Throughout my research, I found out that most murderers don’t just snap one day. In this article, I’ll explore some of the most common psychological factors that lead to murder, including mental illness, childhood trauma, thrill seeking, power struggles, revenge, and emotional breakdowns.

Mental illness is often linked to violent behavior, but not everyone with a mental health condition becomes dangerous. One disorder that stands out in murder cases is antisocial personality disorder, where the person lacks empathy or guilt. According to the Journal of Forensic Psychology (2018), individuals with this disorder often don’t feel remorse and are less capable of understanding emotional consequences. In some famous cases like Richard Chase, who was nick named “The Vampire of Sacramento”. He had schizophrenia and believed people were stealing his blood, so he started killing animals and then eventually people. It shows how mental illness, especially when untreated, can spiral into something dangerous. Another one is Ed Gein, who became famous for making stuff out of human body parts. He only admitted to killing 2 women, but he also dug up graves to use body parts. He had severe psychosis and was obsessed with his dead mother, which totally changed how he saw the world. Both cases prove that while not every person with mental illness is violent, certain untreated conditions can contribute to this kind of behavior. Extreme psychological disorders played a major role in their violent behavior. These killers didn’t just act out of anger. In Mindhunter, the FBI profilers’ study serial killers like Ed Kemper to understand how antisocial disorders show up in behavior before the crime even happens. They had serious psychological disturbances that influenced how they saw the world and how they justified harm.

A lot of murderers share something in common, a traumatic or abusive past. A study in the American Journal of Psychiatry (2015) found that many violent criminals experienced neglect, abuse, or witnessed violence during childhood. This kind of trauma can cause brain areas responsible for emotional control and empathy. Aileen Wuornos was abandoned, sexually abused, homeless as a teen, and basically never had a shot at a normal life. She ended up killing several men, and her crimes were full of rage. It’s sad because if someone had helped her early on, she might not have gone down that path. Even shows like Dexter talk about this. He watched his mom get murdered as a baby and it literally shaped how he processed emotions. His “code” for killing was his way of dealing with the trauma, even though it’s totally fictional, it still shows how those early experiences leave a mark. Trauma messes with how a person connects to the world, especially when it’s never addressed. It’s not just about what they did, it’s about how their experiences shaped their ability to process emotions and impulses.

Some people kill not because they’re angry or broken, but because they crave excitement or recognition. Criminologist Scott A. Bonn, in his Psychology Today article, explained how certain murderers kill for the thrill and power it gives them. Serial killers like Ted Bundy, or Luka Magnotta became obsessed with control and attention. Luka Magnotta filmed himself murdering someone and posted it online like it was a show. He mailed the body parts to government buildings to make headlines. His entire thing was about being famous. He auditioned for reality TV before all that even happened. Same with You, a TV show. The main character, Joe, doesn’t stalk people out of love, he kills to stay in control and keep his version of a “perfect story” going. And he always finds a way to justify it in his head. It’s not just messed up. It shows how the need for attention or control can become full of obsession. They weren’t hiding, they wanted to be seen. Shows like Criminal Minds, explore this theme. For some killers, the act itself isn’t the goal, it’s the feeling that comes with it.

Another big motivator is a sense of powerlessness. When someone loses control of their life, whether through failure, rejection, or humiliation, they may try to reclaim it through violence. According to the National Institute of Justice, many men who murder their families do so after life changing events like divorce or job loss. It’s not always premeditated; it’s a reaction to a deep feeling of failure or rage. Charels Manson, for instance, used murder to feel powerful and influential, despite living most of his life feeling worthless.

Some killers believe they’re righting a wrong. The Psychology Today article, “Why We Kill” explains how revenge can twist someone’s view of morality. Elliot Rodger, for example, said in his manifesto that he wanted to punish women for rejecting him. These types of murderers don’t always feel guilty because, in their minds, they’re getting justice. It’s scary but it shows how personal pain can feed into violent actions.

Another factor people don’t talk about enough is how media and online culture can desensitize people to violence. We’re constantly surrounded by graphic content, true crime documentaries, violent movies, video games, and even TikTok’s jokes about murder. For most people, it’s entertainment. But for someone who already struggles with empathy or feels invisible, it can normalize the idea of violence as a solution. In You, Joe treats murder like a tool to “fix” problems in his relationship. Same with Dexter, who literally lives by a code that justifies killing if it’s for the “right reasons”. When people start to see murder, it can mess with how serious they think it is. A study in Psychology of Popular Media even said that overexposure to violent media can lower emotional reactions overtime.

Lacking empathy or feeling alienated can make someone more likely to harm others. In Understanding the Mind of a Serial Killer, researchers explain how many murderers feel disconnected from the world, which makes it easier for them to justify violence. They see people not as human beings, but as objects. This mindset often starts early. Studies from PMC show that children who later become killers had early signs of isolation, neglect, or emotional detachment.

Sometimes, a person experiences a serious of emotional blows until they break. A PMC study on 1,725 mass murder cases found that many killers were triggered by feelings of hopelessness or rejection. One final failure, losing a job, getting rejected being humiliated can be the last straw. When someone already has underlying trauma or mental health struggles, that emotional trigger can push them to act out in violence.

But not all killers fit these patterns. Some come from loving homes, have no diagnosed disorders, and still commit murder. Israel Keys didn’t have history of abuse, wasn’t out here ranting on social media, and kept his life looking normal. But he was secretly traveling around the U.S. murdering people and hiding “kill kits” underground. He didn’t have any clear motive; he only liked the control and planning. That’s the part that makes it so complex. There are people with way worse backgrounds who never hurt anyone. And then there are people like Israel who seem fine on the outside but are capable of pure horror.  It just goes to show there’s no clear pattern or way to know who’s capable of doing something like that. Some people experience trauma and never hurt anyone. Others seem to have no clear motive at all. That unpredictability is part of what makes murder so complex and terrifying.

Murder isn’t simple. There’s usually a mess of trauma, mental health struggles, and emotional chaos hiding underneath. Trying to understand why someone kills isn’t about making excuses. It’s about figuring out how to stop it from happening again. If people paid more attention to warning signs like untreated trauma or total emotional disconnect, maybe some of these tragedies could be prevented. Murder is always going to be terrifying, but the reasons behind it don’t have to be a mystery.

A lot of killers share one trait, they just don’t feel what the rest of us do. No empathy, no remorse, just cold detachment. That kind of emotional numbness is dangerous because it makes it easier to hurt people without guilt. In Understanding the Mind of a Serial Killer, they explain how that emotional disconnect is what separates someone who’s angry from someone who’s capable of murder. They’re not always crazy. They just see the world differently. To them, people are objects. That makes it easier to justify doing horrible things. In shows like Criminal Minds, you’ll notice how many killers they profile have this same blank, detached attitude. It’s not just about what they do, it’s about how they feel nothing while doing it.

 

 

 

Works Cited

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“Ed Gein: The Skin-Suit Wearing Serial Killer Who Inspired ‘Psycho’s’ Norman Bates.” A&E Real Crime, www.aetv.com/real-crime/ed-gein-the-skin-suit-wearing-serial-killer-who-inspired-psychos-norman-bates. Accessed 15 May 2025.

“FBI Records: The Vault — Richard Chase.” Federal Bureau of Investigation, vault.fbi.gov/richard-chase/Richard%20Chase%20Part%2001%20%28Final%29. Accessed 15 May 2025.

Hoffman, Bobby. “Why We Kill, According to Motivational Science.” Psychology Today, 21 Dec. 2017, www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/motivate/201712/why-we-kill-according-to-motivational-science. Accessed 1 May 2025.

“Israel Keyes.” Wikipedia, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israel_Keyes. Accessed 15 May 2025.

“John List Murders Family and Disappears for 18 Years.” History.com, www.history.com/this-day-in-history/november-9/a-sunday-school-teacher-murders-his-family-and-goes-undercover-for-18-years. Accessed 15 May 2025.

Lankford, Adam. “An Analysis of Motivating Factors in 1,725 Worldwide Cases of Mass Murder Between 1900–2019.” International Journal of Comparative and Applied Criminal Justice, vol. 44, no. 3, 2020, pp. 253–271, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10435045/. Accessed 1 May 2025.

Lewis, David O., et al. “Biopsychosocial Characteristics of Children Who Later Murder.” Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Online, vol. 35, no. 3, 2007, pp. 287–297, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2072934/. Accessed 1 May 2025.

Liem, Marieke, and Frans Koenraadt. “Men Who Murder Their Families: What the Research Tells Us.” National Institute of Justice, 19 June 2009, nij.ojp.gov/topics/articles/men-who-murder-their-families-what-research-tells-us. Accessed 1 May 2025.

“Luka Magnotta’s Web Obsessions.” The Guardian, 5 June 2012, www.theguardian.com/world/2012/jun/05/luka-rocco-magnotta-web-obsessions. Accessed 15 May 2025.

Schlesinger, Louis. “Understanding the Mind of a Serial Killer.” Speaking of Psychology, American Psychological Association, 27 Oct. 2021, www.apa.org/news/podcasts/speaking-of-psychology/serial-killer-mind. Accessed 1 May 2025.