Strange question here, how do murderers minds work?

Answer 1

Clues to a murderer's mind
Tests have been carried out on the brains of murderers

Changes in the brain itself could explain why certain people are more prone to kill than others, say scientists.
The theory will be examined in a new BBC television series Mind of a Murderer.

The vast majority of people suffering from a psychotic illness such as schizophrenia and manic depression pose no threat to others.

But on occasion these people do commit murder and other violent acts.


Nobody knows what sparks the onset of psychotic behaviour but science is beginning to shed new light on the illness.

Ground-breaking new research is showing just what happens to the brain during a psychotic episode, and how this can lead to violence, even murder.

Dr Tonmoy Sharma, director of the Clinical Neuroscience Research Centre in Kent, has shown that there is damage to a crucial aspect of brain processing known as working memory.

This is the ability to keep information in the mind for a very short period of time. For instance, the ability to look at a bus time table, and to remember the number of the bus that you need to catch.


Only few areas are activated in the brain of a psychotic

Essentially, it is the ability to navigate through life.

Dr Sharma carried out brain scans on volunteers while they carried out a simple memory task.

He found that many of the areas of the brain activated in a normal patient were not activated in a psychotic patient.

Harrowing life

He said: "For this patient, life could be quite harrowing. He will not remember information that is very important for him, and will not be able to organise his thought process properly because he would not remember what he has said a few minutes ago.

"To be able to keep information on-line is extremely important for us because it allows us to be able to perform routine tasks almost automatically."


Dr Tonmoy Sharma found differences in the brains of psychotics

Dr Sharma has also shown that psychotics have an impaired ability to recognise emotion. He showed that far fewer areas of the brain are activated in a psychotic person when they are shown a picture of a person they recognise.

"In certain circumstances the emotional recognition system can be so impaired that somebody you have lived with for a long time can seem quite alien to you.

"For a patient with psychosis that is a really terrifying experience.

"However, at that point the person suffering from psychosis is not able to understand that he does not recognise that emotion, he is so caught up in this terrifying ordeal that he has to save himself from that experience somehow.

"Unfortunately it is often family members that have to bear the brunt of that attack."

Psychopaths

The areas of the brain responsible for working memory that do not work in psychotic patients can be restored using anti-psychotic drugs.


Professor Robert Hare believes psychopaths are resistant to treatment

However, medical science has not had the same success with another type of killer - the psychopath.

Unlike psychotics, psychopaths appear to be sane. They can be charming and manipulative, but they are also capable of extreme acts of violence without any sense of remorse. Some 90% of serial killers are psychopathic.

Professor Robert Hare, an expert in psychopathic behaviour, measured the brainwaves of psychopaths as they were shown a series of neutral and emotional words.

He found that unlike healthy patients, the brain activity in psychopaths was no different when they were exposed to words such as "cancer" and "death".

Word deep

Professor Hare said: "Language and words for psychopaths are only word deep, there is no emotional colouring behind it.



A psychopath can use a word like 'I love you' but it means nothing more to him than if he said 'I'll have a cup of coffee'

Professor Robert Hare
"A psychopath can use a word like 'I love you' but it means nothing more to him than if he said 'I'll have a cup of coffee'."

Professor Hare then carried out brain scans on psychopaths while they were exposed to graphic and upsetting images.

Once again, he found almost no activity in the part of the brain activated in healthy people exposed to the same images.

Psychological programmes have attempted to treat psychopaths. However, evidence suggests that they have not been successful.

Professor Marnie Rice worked on an innovative treatment scheme for psychopaths at Oakridge Hospital, Penetanguishene, Ontario.

It was thought to be highly successful. However, when she compared re-offending rates, she found that those who had gone through the programme were actually more likely to re-offend.

Manipulative

Professor Hare believes that such courses simply make psychotics more manipulative.

He said: "Many psychopaths describe the traditional treatment programmes as finishing schools where they hone their skills.

"Where they find out that there are lots of techniques they had not thought about before.

"The pervading attitude is 'just lock them up and throw away the key because you can't treat them'.

"That would be a terrible mistake. We have got to develop new techniques that are likely to work.

"But we are never going to turn them into model citizens, that is a virtual impossibility."

However, a new study at the Institute of Psychiatry in London has made a breakthrough that does offer hope.

Researchers have found that people with a history of violence - whether psychotic or psychopathic - have a smaller area of the brain known as the amygdala.

Dr Sharma said: "This is very exciting as it has important implications for future treatment.

"We can specifically target therapies, not now, but five to ten years down the line, at how we might be able to reverse emotional problems in people with psychosis or psychopathic disorder."

Answer 2

The same as yours or mine.

The action of murder is usually a conscious choice. It may or may not be linked to hate, jealousy or another strong emotion. It may have little connection to any emotion at all.

Consider a terrorist walking into a restaurant with an anti-personal bomb strapped to his chest. He makes a choice to sacrifice his own life to further a cause. He might murder tens or even one hundred people, but the lives of these humans are not valued and have no effect upon the mind of the murderer.

Consider a criminal who shoots one or more persons during the perpetration of a crime. The choice is made to eliminate witnesses is more important than the lives of those shot.

Consider a person who shoots a cheating spouse. caught in the act with an extramarital partner. The expression of extreme jealousy and betrayal is more important than forgiveness and reconciliation.

It is not the logical part of the mind that is faulty. It is the emotional overwhelming or lack of emotion that seems to have the biggest influence on the behavior.

Consider the way your own mind works. How long would you have to watch someone torture your mother before you might consider killing the torturer if the opportunity presented itself?

Would you use lethal force to prevent someone from raping your daughter? Or would you just watch?

Murder is not a mental illness. It is a choice. It may be based upon emotions or faulty logic, moral training or a complete lack of judgment. Remember that most civil murders are done by people who know the victim and have not been lifetime criminals.

Answer 3

There's no common answer because there are many different types . Some kill for profit or in the heat of passion . Some merely for perverse sexual gratification . Someone who kills during a robbery , may have been motivated by fear ; greed or both .The mind snaps in the heat of passion . Most crimes under such circumstances are able to produce remorse in the murderer . The perverse killer usually has no remorse and thinks of their victims as objects ; not people . While all the answers are not known ; great strides are being made in profiling those who commit such crimes , in order to catch them- and a lot more is known as far as what to watch out for in someone who is most likely to become a psychopathic murderer .

Answer 4

I don't think there is any one answer to this question. Each murdererer has a set *plan* whether he is organised or not. Some say it is due to repeated head trauma, some to how he was raised, some on whether or not he was rejected by women, or a father figure.

The best thing for you to do if this is a serious area of study you wish to expand on is to get a few books on profiling and read them, some are fascinating!

Answer 5

Usually their mind goes WACKO and the rest is history

Answer 6

Hmm, since I'm not one I can't help you there. Try getting some books on the subject.

Answer 7

Without conscience, and purely for satisfaction of their urges.

Answer 8

They don't if they did work then they wouldn't murder.

There is no difference between murder and hate. If you hate someone you have murdered them.

Answer 9

Wouldnt know, Im not a murderer.

Answer 10

Very bad.

Answer 11

There mind does'nt.......goes blank I reckon!