Psychological profile: Andrei Chikatilo

Fatima A.

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Psychological profile: Andrei Chikatilo

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Abstract

Every human is capable of committing murder; however, there are only a select few who actually chose to do so. Murders are classified by their nature, whether or not they were premeditated, and the number of victims slain and the time span of the murders. Serial killers are those who generally commit premeditated murder of three or more individuals over an extended period of time with a cooling off period between killings. Serial murderers pose a grand threat to society as they tend to continue killing until they are captured. Scholars across the disciplines of criminology, sociology and psychology have all proposed a number of theories which attempt at understanding what causes such abominable behavior. Focusing here on one particular serial killer, a psychoanalytic approach is applied at comprehending the motives behind his brutal slayings. Subsequently profiling techniques are examined as to their validity and accuracy in isolating and identifying serial murderers. It must be understood at this point that profiling does not aim to predict the actions of a serial murderer at large, instead profiles are created to assist police investigations by drawing a detailed illustration of the criminal by employing a multitude of techniques.

Introduction
Russia's most notorious serial killers
The situations that compelled Andrei Chikatilo to commit heinous murders
The task of catching serial killers
Rational logic behind where criminals commit crimes
Conclusions
References

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[...] Chikatilo was theorized to have university education with emphasis in the liberal arts . working in industry, perhaps in a supply division' (Krivich & Ol'gin 1993, p.228). Finally it was predicted that he possessed multiple personas: one normal persona with his family at home; the second living out fantasies of sadistic rape and murder; and third who played insane, this one showing itself at his court hearings as he sat locked in an iron cage (Krivich & Ol'gin 1993). A more recent method of profiling which has been developed, alongside other profiling techniques and investigative methods, is very useful in locating offenders. [...]

[...] This continuous sense of shame, humiliation and rejection would follow Chikatilo throughout his youth, nonetheless he percervered in his studies becoming withdrawn and reclusive. By his teens, Chikatilo was outperforming his peers academically and it was at this time he had discovered his sexual impotency, which yet again brought him deep shame and humiliation (Krivich & Ol'gin 1993). Consequently, Chikatilo devoted more time to his academic pursuits becoming more and more detached from both social and sexual encounters in his adolescence. [...]

[...] One may speculate that Chikatilo could have become a successful lawyer or politician had he been accepted to study at Moscow University. This would have been a definitive point in his life where his consistent feelings of shame and humiliation could have been redeemed for feelings of pride and accomplishment. Had there been support provided for men suffering impotence, Chikatilo's condition may not have been interpreted so negatively and instead he may have been able to develop a more normal sexual life. [...]

[...] Eventually this paid off, when an officer spotted a suspicious looking man emerging from the forested area, having just murdered a twenty-two year old girl, Chikatilo had a smear of blood on his face and a badly cut finger, he was approached, made to show his papers but with no reason to be detained was allowed to leave (Krivich & Ol'gin 1993). It was not until a few days later when the woman's body was discovered near the very station, that the officer knew Chikatilo was their killer. Andrei Chikatilo was subsequently arrested mid November 1990 two weeks after the final murder, his conduct was calm and he continued to maintain his innocence during police interrogation (Krivich & Ol'gin 1993). [...]

[...] (2002) Psychoanalysis, Violence and Rage-Type Murder: Murdering minds. East Sussex: Brunner-Routledge. Grescoe, T. (1996) Murder, He Mapped. Canadian Geographic, 116(5), pp. 48- 52 Grierson, B. (2003) The Hound of the Data Points. Popular Science, 262(4), pp. 62-68. Knight, Z.G. (2006) Some Thoughts on the Psychological Roots of the Behaviour of Serial Killers [...]

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