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Extreme Killing
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Extreme Killing
Understanding Serial and Mass Murder

Fifth Edition


April 2023 | 392 pages | SAGE Publications, Inc
Accessibly written, yet analytically rich, Extreme Killing: Understanding Serial and Mass Murder, is renowned for its fascinating examination of historical and contemporary serial and mass murder. Authors and experts in the field, James Alan Fox, Jack Levin, and Emma Fridel, bring their years of research to bear in this fascinating analysis of serial, multiple, and mass murder. They examine the theories of criminal behavior and apply them to a multitude of tragic events that involve hate crimes, killings at religious services, music festivals, and school shootings. 

This Fifth Edition is filled with contemporary and classic case studies and has been updated to include coverage of controversial issues such as gun control and mental illness, the role of high-powered weapons in mass shootings, and the distinction between serial and mass murder. 

 
Part I Multiple Murder
 
Chapter 1: America’s Fascination with Multiple Murder
The Gein Legacy

 
Multiple Murder in Popular Culture

 
The Selling of Multiple Murder

 
Craving Attention

 
Killer Communication

 
Killer Groupies

 
Mass Media and Mass Murder

 
Just the Facts

 
Sensitize, Not Sanitize

 
 
Chapter 2: Defining Multiple Murder
Mass, Serial, and Spree

 
Mass Confusion

 
Counting Victims of Serial Murder

 
Typologies of Multiple Murder

 
 
Chapter 3: Theories of Multiple Homicide
Biological Theories

 
Sociological Theories

 
Psychological Theories

 
 
Part II Serial Murder
 
Chapter 4: An Anatomy of Serial Murder
Prevalence of Serial Murder

 
A Profile of the Serial Killer

 
Extraordinarily Ordinary

 
Compartmentalization

 
Rehumanizing the Victims

 
 
Chapter 5: With Deliberation and Purpose
When Killing Is Thrilling

 
On a Deadly Mission of Terror or Revenge

 
Making a Killing

 
For Love and Loyalty

 
Victims of Choice

 
 
Chapter 6: Partners in Murder
Insanity in the Relationship

 
Partners for Profit

 
Partnerships of Men and Women

 
All in the Family

 
 
Chapter 7: Killing for Company
Placing the Blame

 
Killing for Companionship

 
The Functions of Cannibalism

 
Desire for Total Control and Ownership

 
 
Chapter 8: Fantasyland
Keeping Souvenirs

 
Normal and Abnormal Fantasies

 
The Impact of Pornography

 
Sex and Violence in the Media

 
 
Chapter 9: The Making of a Serial Killer
Childhood Suffering

 
Testimony Under Hypnosis

 
Parental Rejection

 
Animal Cruelty

 
Challenges of Predicting Serial Murder

 
 
Chapter 10: Nonsexual Control
Power Over Patients

 
Female Serial Killers

 
Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy

 
 
Chapter 11: Killing Cults
Killing for a Cause

 
The Appeal of Dangerous Cults

 
Suicide or Homicide?

 
Satanism and Serial Murder

 
 
Chapter 12: Catching Serial Killers
Avoiding Notice and Arrest

 
Catching the Serial Killer

 
 
Part III Mass Murder
 
Chapter 13: Mass Murder Facts
Taking Notice

 
Trends in Mass Killing

 
Increasing Severity

 
Characteristics of Incidents, Offenders, and Victims

 
Fear, Hysteria, and Overresponse

 
 
Chapter 14: For Love, Money or Revenge
When Love Kills

 
Sweet Revenge

 
Profiting From Mass Murder

 
Explaining Mass Murder

 
Domestic Violence and Mass Murder

 
Warning Signs of Mental Disturbance

 
Contributing Factors

 
 
Chapter 15: Family Annihilation
A Profile of the Family Annihilator

 
Impact of Unemployment

 
Murdering Moms

 
The Defiant Son

 
 
Chapter 16: Firing Back
Profile of the Workplace Avenger

 
Mixed Motives

 
Workplace Murder by Proxy

 
Romantic Obsession

 
Externalizing Responsibility

 
Social Isolation

 
Screening Out Problem Workers

 
Going Postal

 
 
Chapter 17: Well-Schooled in Mass Murder
Disgruntled Students

 
The Worst-Laid Plans

 
Unique Risk Factors

 
The Role of Violent Video Games

 
The Copycat Effect

 
On to College

 
Addressing the Risk

 
 
Chapter 18: Fighting City Hall
Attacking the System

 
Legal Battles

 
Filing a Grievance

 
Close Call

 
Increasing Alienation

 
 
Chapter 19: Hate-Motivated Mass Murder
A Life of Frustration

 
Blaming Women

 
Rejection and Involuntary Celibacy

 
The Killer as Victim

 
The Growth of Defensive Hate Attacks

 
Multiple Murder to Eliminate Multiple Threats

 
Replacement Theory and Violence

 
Minority Against Majority—Retaliatory Hate

 
Hate Crime Laws

 
Targets Not Included in Hate Crime Legislation

 
Prevention and Response

 
 
Chapter 20: Terror as Tactic
Hate Crime or Terrorist Attack?

 
Trends in Terrorism

 
Terror From Both Extremes

 
Global Terrorism

 
Vehicular Terrorism

 
Combating Terrorism

 
 
Chapter 21: Going Berserk
Paranoid Thinking

 
Confused State of Mind

 
Long-Standing Mental Illness

 
Civilian Battlefields

 
Brain Abnormalities

 
Warning Signs of Disturbance

 
Can they be Stopped?

 
 
Chapter 22: Weapons of Mass (Murder) Destruction
Mass Shootings and Gun Legislation

 
Universal Background Checks

 
Bans on Assault Weapons and Large-Capacity Magazines

 
Concealed Carry

 
Red Flag Laws

 
Lessons from Abroad

 
A Final Shot

 
 
Part IV Aftermath
 
Chapter 23: Coping with Tragedy
Surviving Victims

 
Placing Blame

 
Conspiracy Theories

 
Litigating Responsibility

 
 
Chapter 24: Postscript

Useful breakdown of chapters that parallel taught content.

Miss Sarah Louise Nelson
Health and Social Sciences, University Centre Grimsby
August 14, 2023
Key features

NEW TO THIS EDITION:

  • Expanded examination of media coverage and evidence regarding contagion and copycat effects.
  • Discussion of the distinction between serial and mass murder based primarily on the timing rather than motivation.
  • Looking at victim count threshold for defining serial and mass murder.
  • Exploration of the role of high-powered weapons in mass shootings.
  • Discussion of the nexus between psychiatric disorders and mass murder.
  • Updated coverage of indiscriminate public massacres, terrorist attacks, hate crimes, and school shootings—as well as hotly debated issues such as gun control and mental illness reflects the growing concern around certain types of multiple homicide.

KEY FEATURES:
  • The book’s authors are world-renowned experts in the field of multiple homicide and they provide in-depth, accessible analysis of critical topics.
  • An engaging writing style and a multitude of interesting case studies immerse students in the book’s content.
  • Photos of offenders and crime scenes bring concepts to life.
  • Up-to-date statistics and figures characterize patterns and trends in extreme killing.

Sage College Publishing

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