Answer

Social, Parental and Psychological Risk Factors 

            Jeffery Dahmer’s outcome may be due to a series of factors. First, it is evident that his environment played a major role in his outcome. His parents were constantly fighting, thereby exposing him to a series of psychological tortures as a child. In addition, by constantly moving from one place to another, it disrupted his growth and the ability to make friends. Therefore, “it is clear that he experienced a series of peer rejections, which further enhanced his aggressive behavior” (Feifer & Rattan, 2009, p. 57). Also, since human beings are considered capable of aggressive behaviors, the difference in outcomes is attributed to the factors present in the environment which will either prevent or promote such behavior. “Inadequate social environment can lead to deleterious effects on memory, learning, self-regulation” (Feifer & Rattan, 2009, p.71). If Dahmer’s parents had paid more attention to him, and engaged in nurturing and caring behavior, the impacts on his brain could have been countered. Hence, both nature and nurture play a role in his behavior.

The Role of Temperament in Dahmer’s Criminal Behavior

            Jeffery Dahmer features an impulsive temperament. “A child who is impulsive is a poor self-regulator who often comes into conflict with the environment” (Feifer & Rattan, 2009, p. 82). Nurturing and warm caretakers is a solution to this problem. Dahmer’s criminal behavior was precipitated by the events in his childhood. He was always hoping to catch the attention of his parents, but instead he got a sibling who took it all away from him. Since he was sexually assaulted by an older boy when he was young, Dahmer developed sense of hate for homosexuals. This was the reason why he would target gay men. The impulsive temperament prevents an individual from self-regulating their thoughts and actions effectively. Hence, when Dahmer was experiencing the intense feelings to kill, he could not keep from acting them out.

Explain How Control Factored in Dahmer’s Early Life and Manner of Killing

            The first cause for concern in Dahmer’s childhood is noted by how he would kill animals and hang the skulls on sticks.  This represents his need for control over others, which was later manifested through his actions on the victims. Dahmer lost his sense of control during his childhood in two instances. The first was when he was sexually assaulted, while the second was when his parents separated. These instances pushed Dahmer to want to regain control which he did by taking the life of other living things.

Role of Animal Dissection

            Animal dissection was not only an act of animal cruelty in Dahmer’s situation. It was his was of exercising his power and control over the animals, especially since this would be done when the animals were still alive. Dahmer experienced lower levels of physiological arousal. Individuals experiencing “little anxiety and fear, and are not troubled about getting caught and punished” will often engage in persistent crime (Feifer & Rattan, 2009, p. 68). The same approach was taken when he would later drill the skull of his victims when they were still alive. The act of torture gives the perpetrator a sense of excitement as the victims cry out in pain.

Psychological Motive for Killing – Relationship to Early Life Experiences

            Dahmer killed in the manner that he did mainly because of the psychological trauma he experienced during childhood. As a victim of sexual assault, Dahmer was experiencing a sense of anger towards all homosexuals since the perpetrator was male (Feifer & Rattan, 2009). He never targeted any females all those years. His after-death activity was driven by the ecstatic feeling he would get once he experienced the pain of these victims as they died.

What Factors Were Dominant in Dahmer’s Criminal Behavior

            In Dahmer’s criminal behavior, various factors were dominant, such as the contribution of his sexual assault experience, the nasty separation of his parents, and even the loss of attention once his sibling was born. He was feeling neglected, and tried to get that attention through his actions. Of all the factors I listed, I believe the factor that dominated Dahmer’s behavior the most was his parent’s separation which further worsened his feelings of being neglected.