Targeted mass killings can be prevented

Violence and Gender editor says in response to NY Times editorial

2014-06-11

(Press-News.org) New Rochelle, NY, June 11, 2014–Disagreeing with comments made by Richard Friedman in a recent New York Times op-ed piece, Mary Ellen O'Toole, PhD, Senior FBI Profiler/Criminal Investigative Analyst (ret.), states that there is "a critical and significant difference" between being able to predict and prevent mass shootings. Dr. O'Toole, who is Editor-in-Chief of Violence and Gender, calls on the media to stop using the names of mass murders, which only fuels their desire for fame and is "a very powerful motivator," in a Perspective in the new peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers. The article is available on the Violence and Gender website at http://online.liebertpub.com/doi/full/10.1089/vio.2014.1508.

Misinformation about mass murder behavior linked to the recent UC Santa Barbara killings, and misleading statements and opinions related to these important issues from various sources could harm ongoing research efforts, affect future training of professionals in the field, and make it harder to educate the public about this type of violence. Ongoing misconceptions related to the "snapping theory" are not supported by the most current knowledge and research, which instead indicate that these are not impulsive events, but are well planned out crimes.

In "A Different Perspective on the UCSB Mass Murderer," Dr. O'Toole explains that "pre-incident behaviors" and warning signs typically precede such murders, but they can be misread or overlooked. "Our mission with Violence and Gender is to develop a deeper and more comprehensive understanding of the 'underlying pathologies' that result in this behavior and...to develop actionable hypotheses about prediction."

INFORMATION:

About the Journal

Violence and Gender is the only peer-reviewed journal focusing on the understanding, prediction, and prevention of acts of violence. Through research papers, roundtable discussions, case studies, and other original content, the Journal critically examines biological, genetic, behavioral, psychological, racial, ethnic, and cultural factors as they relate to the gender of perpetrators of violence. Led by Editor-in-Chief Mary Ellen O'Toole, PhD, Forensic Behavioral Consultant and Senior FBI Profiler/Criminal Investigative Analyst (ret.), Violence and Gender explores the difficult issues that are vital to threat assessment and prevention of the epidemic of violence. Violence and Gender is published quarterly online with Open Access options and in print, and is the official journal of The Avielle Foundation.

About the Publisher

Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers is a privately held, fully integrated media company known for establishing authoritative peer-reviewed journals in many promising areas of science and biomedical research, including Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking and Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychopharmacology. Its biotechnology trade magazine, Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News (GEN), was the first in its field and is today the industry's most widely read publication worldwide. A complete list of the firm's 80 journals, books, and newsmagazines is available on the Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers website at http://www.liebertpub.com.

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