Macdonald triad

The Macdonald triad (also known as the triad of sociopathy or the homicidal triad) is a set of three factors, the presence of any two of which are considered to be predictive of, or associated with, violent tendencies, particularly with relation to serial offenses. The triad was first proposed by psychiatrist J. M. Macdonald in "The Threat to Kill", a 1963 article in the American Journal of Psychiatry.[1] Small-scale studies conducted by psychiatrists Daniel Hellman and Nathan Blackman, and then FBI agents John E. Douglas and Robert K. Ressler along with Ann Burgess, claimed substantial evidence for the association of these childhood patterns with later predatory behavior.[2] Although it remains an influential and widely taught hypothesis, subsequent research has generally not validated this line of thinking.[3][4]

The triad links cruelty to animals, obsession with fire-setting, and persistent bedwetting past the age of five, to violent behaviors, particularly homicidal behavior and sexually predatory behavior.[5]

Further studies have suggested that these behaviors are actually more linked to childhood experience of parental neglect, brutality, or abuse. Some argue this in turn results in "homicidal proneness."[6] The "triad" concept as a particular combination of behaviors linked to violence may not have any particular validity, however, and it has been called an urban legend.[7]

  1. ^ Macdonald, John M. (August 1963). "The threat to kill". American Journal of Psychiatry. 120 (2): 125–130. doi:10.1176/ajp.120.2.125.
  2. ^ Ressler, Robert K.; Burgess, Ann W.; Douglas, John E. (1988). Sexual Homicide Patterns and Motives. New York, NY: Simon and Schuster. ISBN 978-0-669-16559-3.
  3. ^ Bartol, Curt R.; Bartol, Anne M. (2012). "Crime Scene Profiling". Criminal & Behavioral Profiling. SAGE. pp. 21–56. ISBN 978-1-4129-8308-2.
  4. ^ Franklin, Karen (2 May 2012). "Homicidal Triad: Predictor of Violence or Urban Myth?". Psychology Today.
  5. ^ Singer, Stephen D.; Hensley, Christopher (2004). "Learning theory to childhood and adolescent firesetting: Can it lead to serial murder?". International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology. 48 (4): 461–476. doi:10.1177/0306624X04265087. PMID 15245657. S2CID 5991918.
  6. ^ Dicanio, Margaret (2004). Encyclopedia of Violence. iUniverse. ISBN 0-595-31652-2.
  7. ^ Skrapec, Candice A.; Ryan, Kori (2010). The Macdonald Triad: Persistence of an Urban Legend. The American Society of Criminology 62nd Annual Meeting. S2CID 142840207.
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