Traditionally we accord femininity with frailty, fragility and daintily passive behavior, but in contrast to it female serial killers have a uncontrollable passive rage inside them. A study done by Robert Ressler, a former FBI agent and to whom the credit of coining the term serial killer is given, has helped the FBI in many serial killing cases and reasoning out the motives and modus operandi (MO) of numerous serial killers. Voices in the head, childhood abuse or trauma, sexual incompetency, attention seeking, inferiority complex, dysfunctional personality are some of the driving factors which lead male serial killers on a killing spree. Since a female offender's reason for committing crimes are much different than her male counterparts, police and law enforcement agencies have a difficult time tracking her and putting her behind the bars.
Money and materialistic tendencies is what drives female serial killers for committing multiple murders. However, attention seeking behavior, cult, sex, need to overpower, personality disorders, to name a few are also leading causes of turning women in to mass murderesses. In 1998, a study was conducted by M. D. Kelleher and C. L. Kelleher where 100 female serial killing cases were taken in to account and its conclusions led to the classification of female serial killers in to nine categories.
- Angel of Death - She can be seen in the role of medical caretaker, nurse, midwife, home aide, doctor, etc. Angel of death usually preys on the sick, vulnerable or invalid in order to fulfill the desires of control and domination.
- Black Widow - A black widow murders for greed. Her husband, children or other family member become sacrificial to her lust for money. They are generally seen to kill for inheritance or for collecting life insurance.
- Sexual Predator - A female serial killer in the role of sexual predator is a rarity, especially with out a partner. But recently new cases have come up which would shed more light on female sexual predator behavior.
- Avenger - She lashes out at all those who have thwarted her in her gains. Deep seated anger, desire for revenge drives this woman to commit mass murders.
- Partner in Crime - Crime teams are not unheard of and male-female partnership for serial killing is also not that uncommon. They often commit crimes of sexual nature where the male accomplices mostly dominate their female partners.
- Profit or Crime - Profit killers, again, are a rarity. They are considered as bright and resourceful without any conscience. They are sociopaths who are ready to kill just to get their way in the world.
- Question of Sanity - Delusions, paranoia, schizophrenia and other mental disorders are some of the reasons which are responsible for crimes done by female offenders. Although these are mainly male serial killer's characteristics, some women psychopathic killers are believed to have heard voices in their heads and suffering from varied delusions.
- Unexplained - Killings by a woman in a random and unapparent manner which baffles the law enforcement, particularly where the motives remain obscure and inexplicable.
- Unsolved - The unsolved crimes which are believed to be the work of a woman.
- They kill for money and other coveted gains.
- It takes around eight years to catch a black widow or an angel of death which is about two times longer than it takes to catch a male psychopathic serial killer.
- They generally keep a low profile and more often than not, kill people who are close to them, or with whom they have a personal connection.
- They target vulnerable victims like sick people, children, spouses, old people.
- Angel of death are killers who are often diagnosed with Munchausen syndrome or Muchausen syndrome by proxy. In the former disorder, the person pretends to be ill, often taking elaborate lengths to mislead doctors and create the symptoms of a disease just to gain the attention of people, and their sympathy. Moreover, they enjoy duping medical practitioners and get a sense of elation from it. Similarly, in Muchausen syndrome by proxy, the person deliberately makes a child or family member sick in order to gain sympathy. They even resort to killing for their gratification.
As female serial killers prefer to keep a low visibility and tend to work silently, methodically and precisely, they choose less aggressive modes for killing than male serial killers like:
- Poisoning
- Clubbing
- Drowning
- Stabbing
- Strangulating
- Shooting
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