Serial Killers: Psychology and Classification

Law-abiding family men and impulsive psychopaths, “missionaries” and cannibals, “local” and “wandering” — serial killers come in many forms, and it’s best to know all about them.

Organized Nonsocial: The Chameleons

This type of killer is a favorite among thriller and horror movie directors (for example, Buffalo Bill from “The Silence of the Lambs”). They are quiet, modest, unremarkable, law-abiding citizens who wear a “mask of normalcy” and are relatively well-adapted to society. These can be either single men or family men (like Andrei Chikatilo). Such a person usually makes a good impression, is charming, takes care of their appearance and health, and easily connects with people.

It’s believed that representatives of this type do not have a psychiatric diagnosis. However, it’s important to note the concept of a “psychological” diagnosis. This means a person may not show clear signs of psychosis (which is the reason for psychiatric hospitalization) but can still be “deeply disturbed,” meaning they have severe personality disorders. The crimes committed by serial killers are ones that a “normal” person could never commit under any circumstances, so any serial killer can be considered “sick,” even if they don’t have a formal psychiatric diagnosis.

The lives of these killers are organized; they may have fairly high intelligence, often graduate from college, show interest in social issues, follow the media, and read articles about their own crimes, which they admire. During interrogation, they behave focused, often have ready answers for investigators, and are very rational and “prudent.” They carefully plan their crimes to reduce the risk of being caught. They try not to commit crimes near where they live, work, or study. However, there are cases of “neighbor” killers — “respectable” people whom neighbors have known for years. Serial killers use this to lure their victims into traps (for example, children, since the rule “don’t talk to strangers” doesn’t apply in these cases).

A typical example of this type is Anatoly Slivko, an honored teacher of the RSFSR, who had a family and two children, was a model communist worker, a master of mountain tourism, and organized a youth tourist club. He was a highly dangerous serial killer and pedophile.

Disorganized Antisocial: The Psychopaths

This type of killer lacks intelligence and rationality. These murderers often have diagnosable mental disorders (schizophrenia, intellectual disability, etc.). Unlike the first type, they make a repulsive impression, are sloppy, uncommunicative, have poor social skills (especially with women), look strange, are often lonely or live with a relative, and have jobs that require no specialization.

Their lives are chaotic and disorganized. Their worldview is extremely narrow; they are not interested in the media or social issues. They completely lack self-reflection, so they don’t comprehend their crimes and often don’t even remember some of them. They don’t plan anything, kill the “first person they meet,” don’t get rid of evidence, and don’t hide the bodies. A classic example is California serial killer Richard Chase, nicknamed the “Vampire of Sacramento” because he drank his victims’ blood and ate their remains. At age 10, he was confirmed to have the so-called “Macdonald triad” — a set of three behavioral characteristics: animal cruelty, pyromania (obsession with setting fires), and enuresis (bedwetting after age 5). The Macdonald triad is often linked to a predisposition for committing especially serious crimes and is a direct indicator that a child is under constant stress, usually due to parental abuse.

By Motive

Serial killers can also be divided by motive:

• Power-seekers (tyrants): Their main motive is asserting their superiority over a helpless victim, trying to compensate for their own feelings of inadequacy (Bob Berdella, David Berkowitz).
• Hedonists: Commit crimes for sexual pleasure (Jeffrey Dahmer, Andrei Chikatilo).
• Visionaries: Psychopathic killers suffering from clinical delusions and hallucinations (Herbert Mullin, who killed 13 people to “prevent an earthquake”).
• Missionaries: See themselves as judges, killing to “cleanse” society of “filth” — prostitutes, homosexuals, people of other races, etc. (Jack the Ripper, Sergey Ryakhovsky).
• Cannibals: Commit crimes to eat the bodies of their victims (Alexander Spesivtsev, Nikolai Dzhumagaliev).

In terms of territory, killers can also be divided into “local” and “wandering” types — those who kill in one region and those who prefer to move from place to place.

It’s important to note that serial killers are rarely limited to just one type; more often, they display a mix of characteristics.