Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-q99xh Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-22T13:08:58.107Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Martyrdom redefined: Self-destructive killers and vulnerable narcissism

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 August 2014

Leonardo Bobadilla*
Affiliation:
Psychology Department, Oregon State Hospital, Salem, OR, 97301. [email protected]://leonardobobadilla.blogspot.com/

Abstract

Lankford shows that suicide terrorists have much in common with maladjusted persons who die by suicide. However, what differentiates suicidal killers from those who “only” commit suicide? A key element may be vulnerable narcissism. Narcissism has been simultaneously linked to interpersonal aggression, achievement, and depression. These traits may explain the paradoxical picture of a person who may appear “normal” in some aspects, and yet hate himself and others so intensely as to seek mutual destruction.

Type
Open Peer Commentary
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2014 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Bobadilla, L. & Taylor, J. (2012) Antisocial and narcissistic personality disorder. In: The encyclopedia of human behavior, vol. 1, ed. Ramachandran, V. S., pp. 154–60. Academic Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bobadilla, L., Wampler, M. & Taylor, J. (2012) Proactive and reactive aggression are associated with different physiological and personality profiles. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology 31(5):458–87. doi:10.1521/jscp.2012.31.5.458.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Breivik, A. (2011) 2083. A European declaration of independence. Online manifesto, August 24, 2011. Available at: http://www.washingtonpost.com/r/2010-2019/WashingtonPost/2011/07/24/National-Politics/Graphics/2083+-+A+European+Declaration+of+Independence.pdf Google Scholar
Bushman, B. J. & Baumeister, R. F. (1998) Threatened egotism, narcissism, self-esteem, and direct and displaced aggression: Does self-love or self-hate lead to violence? Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 75:219–29.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Carbone, N. (2011) Bullying and plastic surgery: Childhood friend speaks out on Anders Behring Breivik's life. Time, July 26, 2011. (Online article). Available at: http://newsfeed.time.com/2011/07/26/bullying-and-plastic-surgery-childhood-friend-speaks-out-on-anders-breiviks-life/ Google Scholar
Cullen, D. (2010) Columbine. Twelve.Google Scholar
Dabbagh, N. (2012) Behind the statistics: The ethnography of suicide in Palestine. Culture, Medicine and Psychiatry 36(2):286305. doi:10.1007/s11013-012-9251-5.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Dickinson, K. A. & Pincus, A. L. (2003) Interpersonal analysis of grandiose and vulnerable narcissism. Journal of Personality Disorders 17:188207.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Jefferson County Sheriff's Office (JCSO) (2006) Columbine documents, JC-001-025923 through JC-001-026859. Available at: http://denver.rockymountainnews.com/pdf/900columbinedocs.pdf Google Scholar
Lankford, A. (2013c) The myth of martyrdom: What really drives suicide bombers, rampage shooter, and other self-destructive killers. Palgrave Macmillan.Google Scholar
Masterson, J. F. (1981) The narcissistic and borderline disorders. An integrated developmental approach. Brunner/Mazel.Google Scholar
Merari, A., Diamant, I., Bibi, A., Broshi, Y. & Zakin, G. (2010) Personality characteristics of “self martyrs”/“suicide bombers” and organizers of suicide attacks. Terrorism and Political Violence 22(1):87101.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Vazire, S. & Funder, D. (2006) Impulsivity and the self-defeating behavior of narcissists. Personality and Social Psychology Review 10(2):154–65.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed