Research Proposal

     It’s no debate that childhood experiences provide the foundation for one’s behavior,

health and future decisions. All of the early interactions we experience develop and shape our

habits, values and thought processes. As a result, individuals with abnormal childhoods may

grow up and experience the world with a vastly different approach than others. Many studies

show that individuals who experienced some form of childhood trauma are likely to engage in

criminal behavior during juvenile and adult years. With my research, I intend to make a

connection between child neglect/child abuse and antisocial behavior. I will be emphasizing the

topic of child abuse in serial killers because of the studies done by researchers that suggest that a

large percentage of them have suffered from neglectful and abusive behavior from parental

figures in the early stages of their lives. I also wish to emphasize on serial killers in my research

because true crime is generally a topic many people are morbidly drawn to and fascinated by.

    Throughout my research, not only did I notice patterns linking childhood trauma to

criminality, but more specifically, I noticed different types of abuse correlating to the typology of

the serial killer. I learned about a method used by criminologists called Behaviour Sequence

Analysis (BSA). Put into simple terms, BSA investigates how chains of behavior and events are

linked over time. It can be defined as “a useful method for understanding the dynamic

relationship between progressions of behaviors and social interactions occurring over

time”(Keatley, 2017). It involves a concept called behavior pairs: the first of the pair being the

antecedent behaviors, and the second being the second behavior being analyzed. In the context of

the topic I will be exploring, the first of the pair would be the form of abuse the individual

experienced during their childhood, and the second behavior would be the type of murder the

individual committed. I will be incorporating this into my research in order to provide strong

empirical evidence for the connection between childhood trauma and serial killers. It will give a

better understanding as to why serial killers each have a particular killing style.

    My ultimate goal with my research paper is to dive in and expand on a topic that

fascinates many people. I want to explore the psychology/sociology of criminal behavior below

what’s at the surface, and share my findings with others in a cause-and-effect type of research

style. I also want this paper to emphasize how important it is for people to be responsible for

their children and make sure they are raised in a loving, caring environment because children are

the future of the world and the way they experience things when they’re young greatly impacts

their future decisions.