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Related Concept Videos

Surveys02:16

Surveys

Often, psychologists develop surveys as a means of gathering data. Surveys are lists of questions to be answered by research participants, and can be delivered as paper-and-pencil questionnaires, administered electronically, or conducted verbally. Generally, the survey itself can be completed in a short time, and the ease of administering a survey makes it easy to collect data from a large number of people.
Case Studies01:22

Case Studies

There are many research methods available to psychologists in their efforts to understand, describe, and explain behavior and the cognitive and biological processes that underlie it.
Deindividuation00:57

Deindividuation

Deindividuation is a form of social influence on an individual’s behavior such that the individual engages in unusual or non-normal behavior while in a group setting. Why? Because in these group settings, the individual no longer sees themselves as an individual anymore, disinhibiting their behavior and personal restraint.
The Stanford Prison Experiment03:20

The Stanford Prison Experiment

The famous and controversial Stanford Prison Experiment, conducted by social psychologist Philip Zimbardo and his colleagues at Stanford University, demonstrated the power of social roles, social norms, and scripts.
Bonanno's Theory of Grieving01:17

Bonanno's Theory of Grieving

Grieving is a complex psychological and emotional process that varies significantly among individuals. George Bonanno's research on bereavement identified four distinct patterns of grieving, offering a nuanced understanding of how people cope with significant loss, such as the death of a spouse, over extended periods. These patterns — resilience, recovery, chronic dysfunction, and delayed grief — highlight the diversity in emotional responses and adaptive mechanisms.
Resilience
The resilience...
Kaplan-Meier Approach01:24

Kaplan-Meier Approach

The Kaplan-Meier estimator is a non-parametric method used to estimate the survival function from time-to-event data. In medical research, it is frequently employed to measure the proportion of patients surviving for a certain period after treatment. This estimator is fundamental in analyzing time-to-event data, making it indispensable in clinical trials, epidemiological studies, and reliability engineering. By estimating survival probabilities, researchers can evaluate treatment effectiveness,...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 17, 2026

A Procedure to Study Stress-Induced Relapse of Heroin Seeking after Punishment-Imposed Abstinence
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Published on: March 23, 2022

Which serial killers commit suicide? An exploratory study.

David Lester1, John White

  • 1The Richard Stockton College of New Jersey, 101 Vera King Farris Drive, Galloway, NJ 08205-9441, United States. lesterd@stockton.edu

Forensic Science International
|November 8, 2012
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Serial killers who died by suicide often came from dysfunctional homes with parental psychiatric issues. Their crimes sometimes involved more deviant sexual acts or murder recordings.

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Area of Science:

  • Forensic Psychology
  • Criminology
  • Psychiatry

Background:

  • Serial homicide is a complex phenomenon with varying victimology and perpetrator characteristics.
  • Understanding factors contributing to serial killer behavior, including their end-of-life actions, is crucial for criminal profiling and prevention.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the characteristics of serial killers who commit suicide.
  • To identify potential correlations between a serial killer's background, criminal behavior, and suicide.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of a sample of 483 documented serial killers.
  • Comparative analysis of suicide completers versus non-completers within the sample.
  • Examination of familial background, parental psychiatric history, and criminal act details.

Main Results:

  • 6.2% of the serial killer sample committed suicide.
  • Suicidal serial killers were more likely to have originated from dysfunctional family environments.
  • Parents of suicidal serial killers exhibited higher rates of psychiatric disturbance.
  • The murders committed by those who died by suicide sometimes involved more deviant sexual acts or the taping of the crime.

Conclusions:

  • Family dysfunction and parental psychiatric issues may be associated with a higher propensity for suicide among serial killers.
  • Deviant sexual behavior and recording of homicides may be indicators in understanding the psychological profile of serial killers who commit suicide.