Nilmeyer 1
MASS MURDER:
The Sociological and Psychological Aspects of Mass Murder
Senior Capstone Project
California State University, Monterey Bay
Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences
By Morgan Nilmeyer in collaboration with Yvette Lemus
Advisor: Juan Jose Gutierrez
Spring 2015
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Abstract
In today’s society we are faced with the horrifying fact that mass murder exists and remains
a continuous tragedy across the country. Mass murder is when a person or group plan and plot a
mass killing of three or more people in one specific location. We explore the psychological and
sociological elements that trigger a mass murder and provide a helpful "how do you know who
or when a mass shooting will occur”. Archival research provided us with case studies, journal
articles, books, and documentaries which helped us get a better understanding of mass murder.
We were able to conduct an interview and gather personal stories that resulted in a gain to
powerful research. With the analysis and data gathered from the studied cases, as well as
established literature, we conclude that mass murder can be understood by looking into the
commonalities, motives, and warning signs often present in it.
Introduction
Mass murder has been present in schools, movie theatres, malls, and other public
locations in which people are finding themselves feeling unsafe. According to the U.S.
Department of Justice/ Federal Bureau of Investigation there has been a recorded 160 active
shooter incidents in the United States between 2000 and 2013. As time goes on more studies are
being done in order to try to prevent future mass murder attacks. This study is based on six cases
of mass murder that occurred in the United States dating back to the year 1999. We intend to find
the sociological and psychological factors that influenced Eric Harris, Dylan Klebold, Seung-Hui
Cho, Scott Evan Dekraai, James Holmes, Adam Lanza, and Elliot Rodger to kill. Our main
research question states, what are the psychological and sociological elements that trigger a mass
murderer? We want a better understanding of the psychological issues these murderers had along
with the social experiences they encountered that may have affected their lives in a negative way.
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To better understand our question, the understanding of the two elements is important.
Psychological elements are, for example, mental illness, depression, anxiety, and other social
behaviors. Sociological elements are those such as bullying, challenge of masculinity, loneliness
and stigmatization. Mass murder throughout this research is defined as the act of killing three or
more people in one intended location, with no specific target. Our data was mostly collected
through archival research such as journal articles and books along with social media data, news
stories, and video documentations. Wanting to expand our research, we were able to conduct an
interview with a male who had a relation to the Seal Beach case and a UCSB student who was
present during the Isla Vista attack. With both archival research and personal stories relating to
mass murder, we were able to gain a better understanding of the six cases we chose to analyze.
There have been plenty of researchers who have taken on the topic of mass murder. When people
are confronted with this topic, they first want to know why people commit mass murder. What
are their motives? And lastly, can mass murder be prevented in the future? Plenty of sociologists
and psychologists have taken on the study of mass murder and found that the psychosocial
factors are common with mass murderers. Factors include anger, loneliness, violent revenge, and
psychiatric illness. Researcher and author James Knoll, found that prevention relies on various
methods like social responsibility, psychiatric efforts, research, cultural considerations, and
media responsibility (Knoll 2). We found a great amount of relevance from past researchers on
this topic. The basis of the commonalities, motives for murder, social and the psychology
elements are all around the same classification of relevance to the information we gathered.
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Literature Review
Since the year 1999 there has been thirty major cases of mass murder in the United States
of America. Mass murder has been around for centuries but today we are finding an uproar of
attacks, especially in school settings. We are living in a society where people of all ages can
access vital information along with deadly weapons. Over the past fifteen years, schools, movie
theatres, malls, and parks have all been targeted locations for mass murders. According to the
study Active Shooter Incidents in the United States Between 2000 and 2013 by the U.S.
Department of Justice, there have been a reported 160 active shooter cases in the United States
that have dramatically altered our country. The basis of our study is to find the psychological
and sociological aspects as to why someone would commit a mass murder. Analyzing previous
research completed by previous scholars, we found the main focus to be of the commonalities of
past mass murder cases, the warning behaviors, along with media and the influence it has on our
society.
When analyzing mass murder we found previous research to focus on the commonalities,
warning behaviors, and the psychological and sociological elements. Peter Langman, author of
the article Why Kids Kill: Inside the Minds of School Shooters, expressed how past murderers
were shown to be severely depressed, revengeful, lonely, and mentally ill and among other
things had a motive (Langman 2009). In the articles researched we found that criminologist,
psychologist and even sociologists were working together to find out the motives of these past
mass murderers. It was apparent that most of the mass murder cases since 1999 had some
commonalities due to their crimes. Some included being revengeful, jealous, anxious, violent,
depressed, and self-conscious. In the case of the Batman Movie Theater and Isla Vista, Santa
Barbara shooting, researchers analyzed the similarities of the two. In a research study called
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Experts: Mass Murderers are hard to Predict, Alicia Chang and Christopher Weber (2014) first
established that both young men had some form of mental disorder along with having violent and
emotional rage. The main point Chang and Weber made was these two young men felt like they
weren’t appreciated in this world, like they did not exist and weren’t good enough.
Authors Rachel Kalish and Michael Kimmel who wrote Suicide by Mass Murder:
Masculinity, Aggrieved Entitlement, and Rampage School Shootings presented the cases of
Virginia Tech and Columbine. They showed how Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, the mass
murderers of Columbine, interacted before they shot and killed thirteen students. In a homemade
video just months before the shooting, Eric Harris said, “people constantly make fun of my face,
my hair, and my shirts.” Some said the boys wanted payback for what they had gone through, in
the end turning their guns on themselves. Cho Seung-Hui, Virginia Tech murderer, killed 32
people and injured 17 more before he killed himself. There was a gender focus in the
comparisons of Columbine and Virginia Tech, in which both murderers had a gendered emotion,
a fusion of humiliation and loss of manhood, which is what most mass murderers feel before
they commit their killings (454).
There are plenty of past studies and research that present data of the sociological and
psychological factors of past murderers but the plot and planning done by mass murderers is also
a major factor. Author Ronald Doctor, writer of Murder: A Psychotherapeutic Investigation
found that most of the mass murderers thought about their killings before they committed it.
They not only thought about their crime but fantasized about it. He stated that mass murderers
replay what they are going to do over and over in their head before they do it, along with
envisioning how their names are going to “be in lights”. When most people are able to fantasize
about a murder they want to commit, most people do not go out and live it out. Doctor goes on to
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say that there are the small percentages of people who do go out and act out on their murderous
dreams or fantasies. Neely Writer, an educated social scientist, found that most mass murderers
tend to be rejected in some romantic relationship, or are sexually incompetent, are paranoid, and
their resentment builds. They want people to notice them and over a period of time when they are
left unnoticed they snap, and innocent lives are taken. Writer states, “Guys who take out a gun
and try to kill as many people as possible, they're not looking for highs -- they're depressed,
angry and humiliated” (125).
As psychologists and sociologists continue to research the mindset and motives of these
past six cases they were able to find common characteristics of both the social settings and
psychological issues of the murderers. It was found through studying the six cases that the
murderers felt unsettled, left out, depressed, angry, and not good enough. Psychologically they
all were disturbed in some way, sadistic, paranoid, along with some being diagnosed with bipolar
disorder and paranoid schizophrenia. Social psychologists are aware that some of these
psychological and social issues are a major factor as to why mass murders occur, but believe not
all psychological and sociological issues are to blame.
Ari Schulman, author of the article There is No Such Thing as a Motive for Mass Killings
explains his frustration with the media and the negative influence it has on mass murder. “Trying
to make ordinary sense out of these extraordinary crimes is fruitless. It leads reporters to
broadcast the shooters’ manifestos and scribblings, to search for any scraps of frustration or
injustice they suffered that might somehow explain their actions. But this devoted attention is
just what allows the shooters to control not only their actions but the meaning of them” (Ari
2013). Researchers, Steadman and Cocozza completed a study called Selective Reporting and
the Public’s Misconceptions of the Criminally Insane and found that there are mostly distortion
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results due to an overemphasis on the symptoms of a mentally ill person. “Criminally insane
versus mentally insane, most people would not know the difference and yet some murderers get
off by pulling the mentally ill card” (526).
When dealing with mass murder, psychological and sociological issues are studied and
compared along with media and how it may have influenced these young men to commit mass
murder. Another factor when it comes to mass murder is motive. They may plot and plan but
what actually makes them go out and kill innocent people. The cognitive dissonance theory,
founded by Leon Festinger, explains the motivation of a psychologically attempt to become one
with certain beliefs and motives. Nicholas Herrera, author of the article Dissonance, the Need to
belong, and Mass Murder, explained how cognitive dissonance can be an understanding for mass
murder. He stated, “We need frequent interaction and persistent caring. A lack of belongingness,
caused by rejection or social isolation, is associated with emotional distress, mental and physical
illness, suicide, crime, and aggression” (2009). There is also a relationship to the aggression and
decision making of acting out the crime of mass murder.
Both Jose Alvarado and Martin Ramirez explained how there is a common bond of
aggression, pleasure, and cognitive dissonance. In their case study Aggression, Pleasure, and
Cognitive Dissonance, they found some behavioral alternatives related to pleasure and decision
making. They stated, “People tended to make aggressive behavioral decisions as a function of the
resulting pleasure: whereas passive behavior and most aggressive behaviors were rated as
unpleasant, mild and moderate aggressive responses provided some pleasure to the aggressor in
decisions.” The theory of cognitive dissonance can explain mass murder in a way that the
attackers thought out their plan, went through with it, and now feel pleasure from it. Both
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researchers found a relationship of pleasure with aggressiveness; showing aggressive behavior
and even cruelty can be pleasurable.
Theory
In today’s society, we as humans have the right to our own opinions, way of thinking,
feeling, and acting. We tend to have a natural independent influence of these characteristics
which classifies the way we live our daily lives. In life we are faced with good and bad and with
that we question human nature and what is considered the correct way of living. Human nature
can be viewed as humans fighting the urge to do evil or to do right. I believe us as humans deal
with human nature in all different ways, some individuals fight to stay in society’s path of
“righteousness” while others know what is wrong and continue to do it anyway. What makes up
a society are the people who live in it and the bond they hold in order to stay connected. Theorist
Emile Durkheim presented the Anomie theory which refers to a situation where cultural norms
are broken in which a disconnection to society occurs. He believed anomie arises when there is a
disconnection between a person, group, or society whose standards are too high and cultural
norms are failed. A sense of human behavior is formed in a society and individuals who commit
mass murder find themselves going against their cultural norms and a disconnection from
society. They in fact feel a sense of rejection and a loss of self-identity that results in innocent
lives taken.
When analyzing the elements of mass murder, a study of both the psychological and
sociological elements are presented. The psychological aspect being what drives one to kill a
mass of people and the sociological aspect based on human behavior and the social factors.
When researching the elements of the six cases, we found a common theme among the murderers
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and their psychological and sociological experiences before they killed. Most of the murderers
felt a lack of belongingness, loneliness, and isolation which led them to their attacks. Applying a
psychological theory, we found Leon Festinger’s theory of cognitive dissonance to best apply.
Today we live in a society where acceptance and a need to belong are crucial aspects of living
life, we drive to form and maintain secure relationships along with positive interactions in order
to feel accepted. When one feels a lack of belongingness, rejected, or socially isolated they are
interacting in cognitive dissonance. In the book A Theory of Cognitive Dissonance written by
Leon Festinger, he mentioned how cognitive dissonance can be psychologically uncomfortable,
in which it motivates a person to try to reduce the dissonance and achieve consonance.
“Cognitive dissonance is the distressing mental state that people feel when they find themselves
doing things that do not fit with what they know, or with the other opinions people
hold” (Festinger 84). Festinger explains how individuals strive toward consistency within the
self and their own opinions and attitudes tend to exist in groups in which are internally
consistent. When one experiences cognitive dissonance they feel a powerful motive to rise in
irrational and maladaptive behavior, behavior that can be socially unacceptable or criminal.
In the case of the Isla Vista, Santa Barbara shooter, Elliott Roger, he was striving for
people’s acceptance and when he did not succeed he felt a sense of dissonance and found his
motive to kill. Both Virginia Tech and Aurora movie theatre shooters, Seung-Hui Cho and James
Holmes, felt a lack of consistency in their education, an absence of appreciation for their hard
work, in which they experienced cognitive dissonance and killed multiple people in result. Nick
Herrera, author of Cognitive Dissonance, the Need to Belong, and Mass Murder explains
cognitive dissonance and the pressures of bringing the appropriate cognitive elements. He
explains how there is a need to belong in this society and how a lack of belongingness is
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associated with emotional distress, mental and physical illness. Mass murderers are found to feel
isolated, depressed, and like an outsider which then results in an experience of cognitive
dissonance. Herrera found that people value and look for acceptance by others and when
acceptance isn’t valued discomfort arises. Herrera stated “attempts to achieve consistency may
fail and the inconsistency then continues to exist, the presence of an inconsistency results is
psychological discomfort” (Herrera 2009). In the cases of the Sandy Hook Elementary school
and Columbine High school, all three shooters Adam Lanza, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold felt
a lack of belongingness, isolated, and were all bullied throughout their childhoods. With feelings
of depression and a lack of acceptance from their peers, all three young men experienced
cognitive dissonance. Through the development of cognitive dissonance the value of moral
development is so important in terms of social behavior one may hold, which explains
criminality through the reasoning and decision-making abilities of criminals.
In a society people hold certain bonds that able them to gain a sense of human and social
behavior. The bonds that individuals have allow a justification to why people do the things they
do. Through a sociological perspective, theorist Travis Hirschi, presented the Social
Bonding/Control theory. Hirschi’s articulation of a social control or boding theory has come to
be considered a significant contribution to the explanation of deviant behavior. The social bond/
control theory presents a notion that people are more likely to deviate when they are poorly
integrated into ongoing group relations. James Chriss, author of the book The Functions of the
Social Bond presented Hirschi’s theory of Social Bond/Control by stating “deviance or
delinquency results when individual’s bond to conventional society is weak or broken” (692).
Hirschi’s theory of Social Bonding/Control argues that “people who have strong abiding
attachments to conventional society are less likely to deviate than persons who have weak or
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shallow bonds” (689). In the Seal Beach case, shooter Scott Dekraai, felt a lack of a social bond
due to his Post Traumatic Stress disorder in which he felt disconnected from society and in result
went on a killing rampage.
In the article Hirschi’s Social Bond/Social Control Theory Hirschi presents his four
dimensions of social bond and their functions. Involvement, commitment, attachment, and belief
are the four bonds used to explain why people in a society involve themselves in deviant
behavior. In the article it was stated “in the bonds that people form to prosocial values, prosocial
people, and prosocial institutions they end up controlling our behavior when we are tempted to
engage in criminal or deviant acts” (58). When there is a weakening of any of the social bonds
by an individual there is an increase in the probability of deviant behavior. The social
bond/control theory is based on individual’s conformity to societal values and expectations in
their social life which is by no means an inherent aspect of human nature. In the basis of the four
bonds, all six cases are applied due to the lack of some sort of social or behavioral bond that each
shooter held. Hirschi’s theory is able to apply to a society where people take part in criminal
behavior.
Applying both a psychological and sociological theory to mass murder, it is shown that
both theories are able to explain and allow a better understanding of the social and psychological
elements of criminal behavior. Festinger’s cognitive dissonance theory applies to mass murder
on a psychological level based on the lack of belongingness or isolation one may feel which
allows them to experience dissonance. The mental state people find themselves in when they feel
like are doing something that does not fit into the norm of a society. The theory of Social
Bond/Control applies to mass murder on a social level based on the social bonds offenders base
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themselves off of. When they lack social bonds they are not controlled by anything other than
their deviant behavior.
Methodology
The main method we used was archival research due to the fact that it is very difficult to
interview someone who has committed or worked with cases of mass murder. Archival research
provided us with case studies, journal articles, social media data, video documentaries and books
in which we were able to grasp the thoughts and studies of past researchers. The focus of our
study was to find the sociological and psychological elements of a mass murderer and what
motivates them to kill. We chose six cases that we found to be most interesting. Columbine,
Virginia Tech, Sandy Hook, Aurora movie theatre, Isla Vista, and the Seal Beach shooting. Our
subjects, Seng-Hui Cho, James Holmes, Adam Lanza, Elliot Rodger, Eric Harris, Dylan Klebold,
and Scott Evan Dekraai were our subjects of research. We watched videos, documentaries, news
castings, conducted interviews and read scholarly articles to expand our research.
In addition to our exploration of scholarly articles and books we were able to conduct an
interview. As we began interviewing a family friend of the Seal Beach shooter, we used a soft
approach as this topic of mass murder is very sensitive. We presented our anonymous
interviewee with a consent form and notified him that the interview will be recorded. During the
recording, we again asked the same questions of consent in order to have it on audio, then we
began asking questions to expand our research. The information provided was transcribed and
added to our project on Nvivo. By gathering archival information, media, and an interview we
were able to use Nvivo to analyze and organize all of our collected data. Nvivo is a qualitative
research computer program designed for researchers to collect, assemble, create, and organize
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data. Journal articles, for example, were uploaded to the program and the information was coded
thoroughly and placed under its correct subtopic for data collecting organizational matters. More
collected data like, articles, images, observations, and videos were all stored and processed
through Nvivo.
By using archival research and the computer program Nvivo we were able to find valuable
information on the commonalities of each mass murder case along with finding warning
behaviors of a mass murderer. By using qualitative research we were able to make a list of the
psychological and sociological elements of each mass murderer along with being able to classify
their different warning behaviors. Through archival research it was found that a mass murder is
nearly impossible to predict but it is possible to make warning behaviors and early childhood
development apparent so teachers, peers, and adults are able to recognize possible early warning
signs.
Anticipated Results/Findings/Risk behaviors
Our findings are based on two different sections, those applied to overall mass murder in
regards to archival research, and those found within the six cases we studied. In the case of
Columbine, both Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, felt the need to pack up explosive devices, shot
guns, and other weapons to shoot up their high school, killing twelve people. With both young
men having uncontrollable rage, depression, and anti-social behavior, it was found that their
psychological and sociological issues were factors to why they did what they did. Both young
men decided to pull their guns on themselves, resulting in a double suicide. Both Sandy Hook
Elementary school shooter, Adam Lanza and Virginia Tech shooter, Seung-Hui Cho, were found
to be socially awkward and isolated from their peers. Both young men felt a lack of
belongingness and wanted revenge for their abusive childhood experiences. With a weak
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psychological mindset and rage for the people surrounding them, both killed innocent people
before pulling their guns on themselves. Aurora movie theatre shooter, James Holmes, was seen
as a shy young man who isolated himself. He had an obsession of dark matter, resulting in him
dressing up as a character from the movie Batman and using similar weapons shown to injure 70
people and kill 12. Holmes is currently in prison, he was charged with murder and attempted
murder. Santa Barbara shooter, Elliot Rodgers, was a young man who felt isolated and
unappreciated in life. He had a deep hatred for women because they did not give him the
attention he felt he deserved. Rodgers wanted to get revenge, with his main target being the top
sorority houses, he took the streets of Isla Vista, shooting outside his car window injuring 13
people and killing 6. It was never made clear if Rodgers turned his gun on himself or if a law
enforcement officer killed him when involved in a shootout. In the case of the Seal Beach mass
murder, Scott Evans Dekraai, was found to be an extremely angry and depressed person. He was
experiencing family issues along with Post Traumatic Stress from his time served in war. As he
went through a psychotic break, 8 people ended up losing their lives including his ex-wife. He
was found guilty on eight counts of murder and will remain in prison for years to come.
Altogether, we found that the common psychological factors to be depression, anger
issues, isolation, a lack of belongingness, and a belief of some type of supremacy (god-like view
of self, masculinity). The common sociological factors are unemployment, instability with social
life, lack of relationship love, difficulties during childhood, weak social media life. Both the
sociological and psychological factors are combined, creating aggression that builds up and in
the end in which they decide to commit such crime. Most of the young men we studied were
found to feel “invisible” or not appreciated, research believes that they found some joy in the
thought that they would finally be noticed or have “their name in lights”. We found that a person
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who commits a crime of this nature does not have a sudden trigger point, it is planned ahead of
time.
Law enforcement, psychologists, and even sociologists are working towards finding
warning signs and risk behaviors in order to prevent future attacks. As we have studied, there are
multiple sociological and psychological elements that may trigger someone to commit a mass
murder but we have yet to discover how to prevent a mass murder from happening. Authors of
the article Experts: Mass Murderers are hard to Predict, Christopher Weber and Alicia Change,
stated there’s no way to predict deadly intentions, “Pinpointing a mass killer is not an exact
science. We don’t have a foolproof way of predicting who will turn violent”. Though there are
many elements of past mass murderers that have been studied and we can look out for, there is
no possible way to predict when someone will reach a breaking point and take action. The U.S.
Department found that the best possible way to prevent a future mass murder is to better educate
law enforcement, teachers, students, and civilians of our society. With the proper education and
mental evaluations, mass murder could be less of an occurrence and more of an educational
process to better keep our country safer.
The chart below shows each of the six cases along with the location that the murder took
place, the time the mass murder occurred, what weapons were used, ages of the murderers,
gender, number of victims, and the lively standing of the murderers.
Case
Location
Time
Murdere
r
Age
Gende
r
Victims
Weapon
Standing
Sandy
Hook
Newton
CT
9:30am
Adam
Lanza
20
Male
Killed 6
adults
and 20
children
.22 Caliber
Savage
MK II
action rifle
Committed
Suicide on
scene
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Isla
Vista
Santa
Barbara
CA
9:30pm
Elliot
Rodger
22
Male
Injured
13,
killed 6
Glock
9mm semiautomatic
pistol
Committed
Suicide
Virginia
Tech
Blacksburg
, Virginia
7:15am
SeungHui Cho
23
Male
Injured
17,
killed 32
Walther
P22 pistol
& 9mm
Glock
pistol with
50 rounds
of ammo
Committed
Suicide
Batman
Shooting
Aurora,
Colorado
12:30
am
James
Holmes
24
Male
Injured
70,
Killed
12
At theater:
Assault
rifle,
shotgun,
(2) .40
Glock
pistols,
throat
protector,
groin
protector,
gas mask,
and
ballistic
helmet.
Charged
with
murder
and
attempted
murder
Seal
Beach
Massacr
e
Seal
Beach, CA
1:30p
m
Scott
Evans
Dekraai
41
Male
Killed 8
9mm
Springfield
, .45
Caliber
Heckler &
Koch, .44
Magnum
Smith &
Wesson
Model 29,
bullet
proof vest.
Pleads
guilty to 8
counts of
murder
Columbine
Jefferson
County,
Colorado
11:19
am
Eric
Harris &
Dylan
Klebold
21(E.H.
)&
18(D.K.
)
Male
Killed
12
Firebomb,
propane
tank
bombs,99
explosive
devices,
9mm,10
shot,
Savage
311
Committe
d Suicide
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When comparing the psychological and sociological factors of each of the six cases we ended up
finding more commonalities than expected. One major commonality is all six mass murderers
were men along with all experiencing some type of social isolation and depression before they
decided to attack.
PSYCHOLOGICAL ELEMENTS
SOCIOLOGICAL ELEMENTS
Columbine
(1999)
Eric Harris &
Dylan Klebold
Harris: Disturbed, Depressed
Personality/Sadistic
Klebold: Psychotic, Suffered from
paranoia, delusional,
Harris: Harassed/Bullied
Anti-social, Depressed
Virginia Tech
(2007)
Seung- Hui
Cho
Paranoid Schizophrenia, Delusions,
Anxious, Hostile fantasies
Shy, Lack of self-identity, Timid, Isolated,
Rage for others,
Bullied and teased as a child
Seal Beach
(2011)
Scott Dekraai
Bipolar Disorder, Post Traumatic
Stress Disorder (2008)
Custody battle over son, Violent,
Depressed, Unemployed, Handicapped
Aurora/ Movie
Theatre (2012)
James Holmes
Paranoid, Narcissistic
Shy, Awkward, Anxious, and Enraged at
Colorado State University for
downgrading his academic performance.
CASES
Klebold: Bullied/wanted revenge
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Sandy Hook
(2012)
Adam Lanza
Asperger’s, Sensory Processing
Disorder, possibly a Paranoid
Schizophrenia(never diagnosed)
Socially Awkward, Shy, Isolated, bullied
as a child, Depressed, Haphephobia (fear
of being touched)
Isla Vista
(2014)
Elliot Rodger
Narcissistic, Paranoid Schizophrenia
and Bipolar (was prescribed
medication for both)
Jealous, Envious, Revengeful, Socially
awkward, Depressed, Couldn't find social
success, In therapy since his middle
childhood.
Conclusion
Researching and analyzing the six presented cases of mass murder has allowed me to
gain a better understanding of the psychological and sociological elements of human behavior.
The seven young men presented were all found to have commonalities of both psychological and
sociological issues. The most common psychological issues found among them were mentally
disturbed, paranoid, and anxious, depressed and even some cases of bipolar disorder along with
the most common sociological issues being social isolation, a lack of belongingness, bullied, and
socially awkward. Finding these commonalities through archival research and case studies, we
are able to see just how both these psychological and sociological elements can affect one to
commit a mass murder. Though we have found the commonalities of past mass murder cases it
has been shown to be difficult to predict when a mass murder will occur. Studying the six cases
it was found that each of the killers had plotted and planned their attacks, though they had
motivation, there was never a snapping point. They were all triggered by some sort of
psychological or sociological element in which they decided to attack. Researchers found the
best solution to prevent future mass attacks from occurring is to better educate law enforcement,
teachers, students, and civilians. With the proper education of what to look for, the risk
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behaviors, and the warning signs we as a society could potentially prevent a future mass murder
from occurring.
Timeline
DATE
ACTION
September 8, 2014
Topic discovered
September 15, 2014
Main method decided
September 17, 2014
Data collection start
October 6, 2014 - December 20, 2014
Data analysis
March 20, 2015
Data collection finished
May 1, 2015
Capstone proposal completed
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