Scholarly+articles

“It is my observation that genetics are irrelevant in the formation of personality, especially severe pathology. I draw this conclusion after having facilitated hundreds of interventions in the lives of young children which changed their personalities significantly from the realm of avoidant, inauthentic, reactive, rebellious, bossy, violent, deceptive, shy, arrogant, controlling, and defensive, etc. to honest, authentic, natural, expressive, spontaneous, and so forth.” Says, Faye Snyder, PsyD. He believes that any genetic predisposition that a child has can be fixed by good parenting and can grow up to be a normal adult. The parents can also create a very unhealthy living situation for the child and cause the child to grow up to a serial killer. It all lies with the parents. There are specific events that can cause a child to steer down the wrong path and it is important to know what these events may be. This is why Snyder includes what not to do or let your child experience in his parenting class called //The Miracle Child Parenting Series.// A main factor in the long-term health of a child is parental neglect. When the parents are either constantly working or not around and the child is tossed from caregiver to caregiver, they could possible grow up to be an unhealthy adult. Snyder’s essay is about my exact topic that the environment is more important than the genetics of a child, as they grow up to set their outcome as an adult. This author has a doctorate in psychology so this is definitely a credible and scholarly source. This essay he has written is very useful to the subject I am researching because it both supports my thesis and is factual backed up by hard evidence.

Snyder, Faye. "Killers are made, not born." N.p., n.d. Web. 12 June 2011. .

"If Aileen Wuornos had been blessed with the opportunity for a decent childhood,she might have become an aggressive entrepreneur rather than a deadly highway prostitute." Says, Richard N. Kocsis, PhD. Richard speaks about how for a serial killer to be created, dehumanization and a lack of empathy must occur. Dehumanization is when the killer views his or her victim as an object. Something that is there specifically for them to use and for them to play out their fantasies with. These serial killers have fantasies because earlier in life during their childhood, reality was too hard to bear so they retracted back into their own world. Dehumanization leads to lack of empathy. If something is there only for the purpose of using, and it is supposed to be used by you, why feel bad? In many cases serial killers, " often view prostitutes [many victims of serial killers are prostitutes] as mere sex machines, gays as AIDS carriers, nursing home patients as vegetables, and homeless alcoholics as nothing more than trash. By regarding their victims as subhuman elements of society, the killers can delude themselves into believing that they are doing something positive rather than negative." This ability allows the serial killers to be ruthless and unforgiving. In most cases, they do not feel remorse for the crimes they committed.

This was a very good source with plenty more information than just this brief summary of one section. In the full book, there is abundant information. This was very helpful because it helped explain what having a bad childhood can lead to such as dehumanization. It helps show the severity of what bad parenting skills or lack of parents altogether can do to a child.

Kocsis, Richard N. "Serial Murder and the Psychology of violent crimes." N.p., n.d. Web. 13 June 2011. .