ETHIOPATHOGENESIS OF SERIAL VIOLENCE: A RETROSPECTIVE STUDY ON A SAMPLE OF 20 SUBJECTS

Correlations between Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (C-PTSD), ANS Dysregulation, and Self-Care Strategies (STAS). PART TWO

Authors: Tiziana Calzone & Massimo Lattanzi

Reference Institutions: AIPC (Italian Association of Psychology and Criminology), CIPR (Italian Center for Relational Psychotraumatology), ONOF (National Observatory on Domestic Homicide).

Methodology and sources

This study is based on a qualitative and retrospective analysis of criminal biographies and forensic data contained in the volume Serial Killers: The 20 Most Ruthless Criminals of All Time by Mason Hallow, used as the primary source of the investigation. The methodology involves a clinical re-reading of historical narratives through the theoretical framework of Relational Psychotraumatology and the research protocols of AIPC and CIPR. Specifically, the profiles underwent a psychobiological evaluation aimed at identifying the etiological markers of Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (C-PTSD) and classifying the methods of managing autonomic dysregulation through the application of the STAS Scale (Toxic Substances and Self-Care of Suffering). This allows for the correlation of past traumatic experiences with subsequent serial violence and substance abuse.

Abstract

This study analyzes the criminal biographies in Mason Hallow's Serial Killers through the lens of Relational Psychotraumatology. The investigation focuses on a sample of 20 serial killers, examining the incidence of PTSD and C-PTSD as primary etiological factors of violence. Through the application of the STAS Scale, the study profiles how these subjects attempt to regulate Autonomic Nervous System (ANS) dysregulation. The results reveal a near-total prevalence (95%) of early cumulative trauma and confirm that 100% of the sample utilizes maladaptive self-care strategies to manage traumatic pain.

Case study analysis: psychotraumatological profiles (Summary)

Below is the mapping of the 20 profiles, highlighting the primary traumatic core identified:

1. Luis Alfredo Garavito: Chronic paternal domestic violence, maternal neglect, and adolescent sexual abuse.
2. Harold Shipman: Developmental loss (mother's death from cancer) with a fixation on morphine as a tool for pain/power control.
3. Pedro Alonso López: Abandonment (expelled from home at age 8) and sexual poly-traumatization on the streets and in institutions.
4. Ted Bundy: Identity and attachment trauma (late discovery of biological mother, violent grandfather).
5. Andrei Chikatilo: Historical trauma (famine), transgenerational trauma (cannibalism stories), and chronic social humiliation.
6. Gary Ridgway: Maternal relational trauma (dominant/humiliating mother), sexualization of hatred, and prolonged enuresis.
7. John Wayne Gacy: Systematic paternal physical violence and childhood head trauma leading to blackouts.
8. Jeffrey Dahmer: Emotional abandonment (divorce, loneliness), early surgery perceived as bodily invasion.
9. Richard Ramirez: Exposure to paternal violence and vicarious traumatization (witnessed cousin kill his wife).
10. Yang Xinhai: Social trauma from extreme poverty and relational rejection experienced as self-annihilation.
11. Samuel Little: Early maternal abandonment and institutionalization; development of an objectifying view of women.
12. Mikhail Popkov: Relational trauma linked to negative maternal figures and paranoid perception of female betrayal.
13. Niels Högel: Pathological narcissism stemming from inner emptiness and a dysregulated need for external validation.
14. Miyuki Ishikawa: Contextual trauma (war, extreme poverty) leading to desensitization toward infant death.
15. Javed Iqbal: Abuse of power trauma (police torture/humiliation), triggering a vindictive repetition compulsion.
16. Daniel Camargo Barbosa: Childhood humiliation trauma (stepmother dressed him as a woman), transformed into gender-based hatred.
17. Yvan Keller: Neglect trauma within poverty and family chaos, leading to early deviance.
18. Aleksandr Pichushkin: Childhood head trauma and loss of a primary attachment figure (grandfather), resulting in isolation.
19. Jack the Ripper: Unknown profile. Behavioral analysis suggests severe emotional dysregulation compatible with deep relational trauma.
20. Larry Eyler: Identity conflict and family abandonment, managed through substance abuse.

Descriptive analysis: incidence of PTSD and C-PTSD

While PTSD is linked to a single event, C-PTSD arises from prolonged, repeated exposure (often in childhood) from which the victim cannot escape.

• C-PTSD (95%): Almost all subjects lived in contexts of chronic violence or neglect, preventing the development of an integrated "Self."
• PTSD (15%): Present as a specific trigger (e.g., specific torture or physical accident) overlaid on pre-existing C-PTSD.
• ANS Dysregulation: * Sympathetic Dominance (Hyperarousal): Constant alert and defensive rage (e.g., Ramirez).
  • Dorsal Vagal Dominance (Hypoarousal): Emptiness, numbing, and disconnection (e.g., Dahmer).

Self-care of pain profiles (STAS Scale)

• Alcohol-Prevalent Cluster (45%): Used as an anesthetic to sedate the limbic system and facilitate dissociation during the crime (e.g., Dahmer, Chikatilo).
• Poly-abuse and Stimulants Cluster (20%): Use of cocaine, LSD, or opioids to achieve a sense of omnipotence and counteract post-traumatic depression (e.g., Ramirez, Shipman).
• Behavioral Self-Care Cluster (35%): The behavior itself becomes the "substance" (Sex addiction, Narcissistic control, or obsessive Revenge).

Conclusions

The study provides definitive empirical confirmation of the CIPR model:

1. C-PTSD (95%) is the central etiological factor.
2. Pathological Self-Care (100%) is universal; serial murder is a desperate, tragic attempt to manage unbearable traumatic pain.
3. Prevention: Recognizing these early trauma markers and self-care strategies is the only viable path to early prevention.

"Explaining is not justifying." By illuminating the shadows of a killer's personal history, we shift the focus from posthumous indignation to early clinical intervention.