P S YC H O PAT H S A N D

S O C I E T Y

M Y Q U E S T I O N

How has public perception of vindictive, malicious serial killers and the madness that defines them

as psychopath changed over time with the media’s presentation and the appreciation of them

in film and television?

P S YC H O PAT H S

• psychopathy = “a disorder that consists of multiple components ranging on the emotional, interpersonal and behavioral spectrum’

J. Blair

superficial charm failure to learn

from punishment

failure to form intimate relationships

egocentricity

dishonesty

undependability

lack of guilt

lack of anxiety

poverty of emotions

lack of insight into ones behavior on others

failure to plan ahead

P S YC H O PAT H Y C H E C K L I S T

• blood splatter analyst

• psychopathic serial killer

• 3 children

• numerous relationships

D E XT E R M O R G A N

A N A LY S I S …

Indoctrination

vs.

general public acceptance

vs.

overthinking entertainment

C U LT U RA L T RA N S F O R M AT I O N ?

‘social changes taking place…contributing to significant changes in society

Michael Birch

• Steadman and Cocozza Project, 1977 - designed to assess the media coverage on beliefs and attitudes - found that there was public confusion as to who was criminally insane

• not necessarily an obsession or acceptance with serial killers, the portrayal of the media has led to confusion amongst the general public and thus this confusion is being confused with acceptability

C O L D V S . WA R M

• early films such as Pyscho portray killers as violent, predatory men

• more recently the introduction of Dexter, Sherlock Homes andBreaking Bad have seen a new perspective

P S YC H O PAT H S

• concern with ‘impressionable’ minds watching

• moved to later showing

• advised for the adult viewer

”The series compels viewers to emphasize with a serial killer, root for him to prevail, to hope he doesn’t get discovered” Timothy Winter - Parents Television Council

H O W E V E R …

A N E W C U LT U R E

Dexter offers a contrast between traditional American ideology and America’s new pop culture

“killers are coded as monsters, but a tragic personal history of abuse or neglect is also usually fore

grounded as a part of the narrative, humanizing them to at least some extent and making them capable of

earning our sympathy”A. Donnelly - The Journal of Popular Culture

• pose no threat to our conceptualizations of what is right and wrong

• he is other, not like us

• likeability comes from lack of threat

D E XT E R I S D I F F E R E N T

S UP E R H E R O S

• superheros - a victor in the interest of good

• those targeted are those who threaten society

• underlying morals of the story line are recognizable and comparable

T E C H N I Q U E S

• become obsessed because of the techniques of screenwriters and editors

“We really try to handle the violence in a suggestive, elegant way rather than a very

explicit way”

E. Jenson - The New York Times

• not a cultural transition but an editing process that deceives the viewer into liking the character

C O N C LU S I O N

• underlying values of protecting

• entertainment

• more of a fad than a perception change

• underestimating people’s judgement

T H A N K YO U

C I TAT I O N S

Birch, Michael. Mediating Mental Health: Contexts, Debates and Analysis. Ashgate Publishing, UK. 2012. Print.

Blair, J. and Blair, K. and Mitchell, D. The Psychopath: Emotion and the Brain. Blackwell Publishing, MA. 2005. Print

CBS Shows Ultra-Violent Serial Killer Drama Dexter in Prime Time. Parents Television Council, 2008. Web.

Cocozza, J.J and Steadman, H.J. Public Perceptions of the Criminally Insane. PubMed.gov, 1978. Web.

Dexter. IMDb. 2012. Web

“Dexter, Season 1 Trailer” Dexter. Showtime. 2006. Television.

Donnelly, A. M. (2012), The New American Hero: Dexter, Serial Killer for the Masses. The Journal of Popular Culture, 45: 15–26

Jenson, Elizabeth. A Warmer, Fuzzier Kind of Serial Killer?. The New York Times. nytimes.com, 26 Sept. 2008. Web.

Nazaar, Jason. Marvel Superheros. Marvel. 2008. Accessed 13th April 2014. http://www.jasonnazar.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/team-justice-league.jpg.

Pyscho Tailer Title Screen. Paramount Pictures. 1960. Accessed 18th April 2014

Sherlock Poster. BBC. 2010. Accessed 6th April 2014. http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VO7S_D4MdYk/TieobeUfcXI/AAAAAAAAIzw/r0HjyMnJTcI/s400/sherlock_uk-show.jpg

Simpson, Philip L. Psycho Paths: Tracking The Serial Killer Through Contemporary American Film and Fiction. Southern Illinois University Press. 2000. Print.