What Turns a Psychopath into a Killer?

Abstract

According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation in 2021 there were 13,477 homicide incidents which total about 36 murders per day. Most murders are committed by a person that the victim has known or has met once before but some are completely random. The random ones have the most linked connection with being committed by people who are diagnosed with an antisocial personality disorder or psychopathy, as seen in people such as Ed Gein, Richard Martinez, or Ted Bundy, people who have committed heinous acts of murder without feeling remorse toward victims or their families. In society, many people think a psychopath is simply a person who does not have the mental capacity to do the right thing rather than thinking of any of the genetic or environmental factors that play a role when creating a psychopath. The paper will cover factors that may contribute to violence in psychopaths, such as brain structural differences and childhood traumas.