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Hybristophilia

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Serial killer Ted Bundy was a subject of widespread hybristophilia, with many women writing him love letters and attending his trials.

Hybristophilia is the phenomenon characterized by sexual interest in and attraction to those who commit crimes. The term hybristophilia is coined by John Money in 1986[1] and is derived from the Greek word hubrizein (ὑβρίζειν), meaning "to commit an outrage against someone" (ultimately derived from hubris ὕβρις, "hubris"), and philo, meaning "having a strong affinity/preference for".[2] In popular culture, this phenomenon is also known as the "Bonnie and Clyde syndrome".[3]

Manifestation

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Manifestations of hybristophilia include the romanticization of criminals, especially serial killers.[4] Many high-profile criminals, particularly those who have committed atrocious crimes, receive "fan mail" in prison that is sometimes amorous or sexual, presumably because of this phenomenon. Women who write love letters to or even pursue men who are incarcerated for a crime are sometimes referred to as a prison groupie or a serial killer groupie.[5][6][7] In some cases, admirers of these criminals have gone on to marry the object of their affections in prison.[8]

While less common, hybristophilia can also occur in men with female serial killers.[8]

Causes

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Some speculations have been offered as to the cause of hybristophilia. Katherine Ramsland, a professor of forensic psychology at DeSales University, discusses the condition in women and mentions that some of the women who have married or dated male serial killers have offered the following reasons:[8]

  • "Some believe they can change a man as cruel and powerful as a serial killer."
  • "Others 'see' the little boy that the killer once was and seek to nurture him."
  • "A few hoped to share in the media spotlight or get a book or movie deal."
  • "Then there's the notion of the 'perfect boyfriend'. She knows where he is at all times, and she knows he's thinking about her. While she can claim that someone loves her, she does not have to endure the day-to-day issues involved in most relationships. There's no laundry to do, no cooking for him, and no accountability to him. She can keep the fantasy charged up for a long time."

Others offered reasons along the lines of: "Some mental health experts have compared infatuation with killers to extreme forms of fanaticism. They view such individuals as insecure people who cannot find love in normal ways or as 'love-avoidant' females who seek romantic relationships that cannot be consummated."[8]

Psychologist Leon F. Seltzer proposes the condition could be related to the riskiness involved with dating a criminal, the desire to tame or fix them, and primitive instincts based on evolutionary psychology. In the latter theory, he mentions dominance is attractive as it would mean such men could protect women and their offspring, according to evolutionary history. Seltzer says women today may consciously realize that it is unwise to date a serial killer, but they are nevertheless attracted to them; he stated, "as a therapist I've encountered many women who bemoaned their vulnerability toward dominant men who, consciously, they recognized were all wrong for them".[9] As evidence of women's fantasy preference for dominant men, he refers to the book A Billion Wicked Thoughts: What the World's Largest Experiment Reveals about Human Desire by Ogi Ogas and Sai Gaddam. Seltzer discusses Ogas and Gaddam's argument that this fantasy is the dominant plot of most erotic/romantic books and movies written for women, but the fantasy always holds that this male dominance is conditional, "it doesn't really represent the man's innermost reality". He also says in reality, very few women are actually swayed by these "primitive instincts".[9]

Elizabeth Gurian wrote that hybristophilia may be a result of an individual being the victim of abuse or having a seeking behavior.[10] A linkage was also made to the case of it being for the purpose of 'controlling fear', in which people consciously or unconsciously deny the threat in accordance with the extended parallel process model.[4]

Social media contributions for an easier method of showcasing attraction to the criminal hybristophilia have also been discussed; a 2023 paper stated that "If social media platforms including TikTok provide users with the ability to freely express themselves publicly and anonymously, then individuals wanting to showcase and share their affection and admiration for criminal offenders might opt to utilize these platforms for this purpose."[11]

Notable examples

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  • One of the most infamous examples of hybristophilia is the large number of women attracted to Ted Bundy after his arrest.[12][13] He often drew scores of women at the jammed courtrooms of his trials each day.[14] Bundy allegedly received hundreds of love letters from women while he was incarcerated, and married a woman, Carole Ann Boone, whom he had met while both were working in Washington. He proposed to her in the middle of proceedings while Boone was on the witness stand. Boone gave birth to a daughter whom it was believed Bundy had fathered.[15][16]
  • Jeffrey Dahmer, a serial killer, is said to have had amorous women sending him letters, money, and other gifts during his time in prison despite being a gay man and a cannibal.[17]
  • Richard Ramirez, the "Night Stalker" who killed 13 people and had "more than a passing interest" in Satanism, had fans who would write him letters and pay him visits. This included Doreen Lioy, who married him in California's San Quentin State Prison on October 3, 1996.[18] However, Lioy eventually broke ties with Ramirez in 2009 after DNA confirmed he had raped and murdered 9-year-old Mei Leung, though it seems she never legally filed for divorce.
  • Cult leader orchestrator Charles Manson's fangirls are also examples.[19]

References

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  1. ^ Money, John (1986). Lovemaps: Clinical concepts of sexual/erotic health and pathology, paraphilia, and gender transposition in childhood, adolescence, and maturity. Irvington Publishers. p. 263.
  2. ^ Eric W. Hickey, ed. (2006). Sex crimes and paraphilia. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson Education. pp. 197–9. ISBN 978-0-13-170350-6.
  3. ^ "Bonnie and Clyde Syndrome Is a Real Thing - Nerve". Internet Archive. Archived from the original on November 13, 2017.
  4. ^ a b Syed, Noor (January 3, 2023). "Fear to Love: Fear Could Explain Women's Attraction toward Male Serial Killers". doi.org. p. 9. Retrieved January 28, 2025.
  5. ^ Poniewozik, James (April 2, 2018). "Review: 'The Last O.G.' Searches for Brooklyn, and Itself (Published 2018)". The New York Times – via NYTimes.com.
  6. ^ Mailhot, Terese. "Paul Simon Money." Transmotion 2.1&2 (2016): 131.
  7. ^ Parker, R. J. (December 26, 2014). Editing, Hartwell (ed.). Serial Killer Groupies. Illustrated by Aeternum Designs. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform. ISBN 9781502540904.
  8. ^ a b c d Ramsland, Katherine (April 20, 2012). "Women Who Love Serial Killers". Psychology Today. Retrieved May 13, 2013.
  9. ^ a b Seltzer, Leon F. (April 24, 2012). "Why Do Women Fall for Serial Killers?". Psychology Today. Retrieved May 13, 2013.
  10. ^ Gurian, Elizabeth A. (2013). "Explanations of mixed-sex partnered homicide: A review of sociological and psychological theory". Aggression and Violent Behavior. 18 (5): 520–526. doi:10.1016/j.avb.2013.07.007. ISSN 1359-1789.
  11. ^ Williams, Thomas James Vaughan; Slater, Harriet Emily; Tamayo Gomez, Camilo (February 1, 2025). "Unpacking the Construction of Online Identities of Hybristophilia Communities on TikTok". Deviant Behavior. 46 (2): 179–194. doi:10.1080/01639625.2024.2338273. ISSN 0163-9625.
  12. ^ Cawthorne, Nigel (2007). Serial Killers and Mass Murderers: Profiles of the World's Most Barbaric Criminals. Ulysses Press.
  13. ^ "Seriously Though, Why Were So Many Women Obsessed With Ted Bundy?". Women's Health. May 7, 2019.
  14. ^ Michaud, Stephen G. "The Only Living Witness: The True Story Of Ted Bundy". Crime Library.
  15. ^ "Bundy's wife is pregnant – but she refuses to kiss, tell". Deseret News. Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret News Publishing Company. Associated Press. September 30, 1981. Retrieved April 25, 2011.
  16. ^ Levenson, Bob (January 24, 1989). "Courtroom Wife Fades Out of Sight, Not A Recent Visitor". Orlando Sentinel.
  17. ^ Barnard, Ian. "The Racialization of Sexuality: The Queer Case of Jeffrey Dahmer". Thamyris. 7 (1 & 2). Rodopi: 88. ISSN 1381-1312.
  18. ^ Fimrite, Peter; Taylor, Michael (March 27, 2005). "No shortage of women who dream of snaring a husband on Death Row". San Francisco Chronicle. San Francisco, California: Hearst Corporation. Archived from the original on July 10, 2013. Retrieved May 22, 2012.
  19. ^ Corsini, Raymond Joseph (1999). The Dictionary of Psychology. Psychology Press. p. 692. ISBN 1-58391-028-X.

Further reading

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