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Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice
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Fractured Identity Syndrome

A New Theory of Serial Murder

STEPHEN T. HOLMES

University of Central Florida

RICHARD TEWKSBURY

University of Louisville

RONALD M. HOLMES

University of Louisville

The topic of serial murder has captured the attention of many in the academic community. A quick scan of the best selling novels in any given week are likely to include at least a couple of postings about a serial or other type of predatorial killer. Even on college campuses today, courses on serial murder rank as one of the hardest classes for students to get in to. Despite the attention currently being paid to the topic of serial killing, relatively little is known about the intrinsic motivation and etiology of these individuals. This is the purpose of this article. In it, we examine the current literature concerning serial murder and explain how current theories are often no more than physical descriptions or characteristics of these murderers acts. In this article, we propose a new theory of serial murder merging elements of Cooley's Looking Glass Self and Goffman's Virtual and Actual Social Identity calling it "Fractured Identity Syndrome" (FIS). In doing so, our purpose is clear. It is to get the profession to begin to think about and develop theories concerning what causes the serial murderer to abandon normal modes of behavior and brutally take the lives of his/her victims.

Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice, Vol. 15, No. 3, 262-272 (1999)
DOI: 10.1177/1043986299015003004
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