AN EXAMINATION OF BEHAVIORAL CONSISTENCY USING INDIVIDUAL BEHAVIORS OR GROUPS OF BEHAVIORS IN SERIAL HOMICIDE

Alicia L. Bateman and C. Gabrielle Salfati

ABSTRACT

Establishing behavioral consistency in serial homicide offending behavior is essential when linking homicides together and to a common offender. An examination of 35 serial homicide behaviors utilized by 90 offenders in 450 serial homicide cases was carried out to identify if these offenders consistently perform the same behaviors across their series of homicides and if it is more effective to examine individual behaviors or groupings of behaviors in order to identify behavioral consistency.  Unlike previous consistency research into serial homicide, this study was unable to provide empirical support for behavioral consistency across a series of homicides by the same offender.  Furthermore, the results suggest that both the utilization of individual behaviors and groupings of behaviors were ineffective for identifying behavioral consistency in serial homicide offending behaviors.