- Title
- A case study of Jeffrey Dahmer
- Creator
- Freeman, Chanté F
- Subject
- Serial murders -- Case studies
- Subject
- Personality development -- Psychological aspects
- Date Issued
- 2021-04
- Date
- 2021-04
- Type
- Master's theses
- Type
- text
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/10948/51032
- Identifier
- vital:43202
- Description
- Jeffrey Lionel Dahmer is an infamous serial killer and cannibal. He was described as a normal, but shy little boy, yet developed into an adult who brutally murdered, engaged in necrophiliac acts, dismembered and ate parts of his victims. This study took the form of an intrinsic case study with the aim to explore and describe the personality development of Jeffrey Dahmer. This exploration examined Dahmer’s known childhood experiences through the theoretical perspective of Otto Kernberg’s (1974, 1975, 1976) Object Relations Theory, in order to understand how Dahmer’s personality was formed. Data was collected from multiple resources, including books, authoritative biographies, academic articles, and internet sources available in the public domain. It was analysed using Miles, Huberman, and Saldaña’s (2014) three-step process namely, data condensation, data display, and conclusion drawing and verification. This study’s findings confirmed the formation of pathological behavioural patterns supported by primitive defence mechanisms, associated with Kernberg’s lower level pathologies. It reflected Dahmer’s pathological formation of psychic structures seen in a diffuse identity and impaired formation of the superego, that supported these patterns. Additionally, the research was valuable in enhancing the researcher’s insight into personality development according to Kernberg’s Object Relations Theory. This study may also be beneficial to practising clinicians and professionals as an example of the early identification of personality pathology.
- Description
- Thesis (MA) -- Faculty of Health Sciences, 2021
- Format
- computer
- Format
- online resource
- Format
- Format
- 1 online resource (xii, 159 pages)
- Publisher
- University
- Publisher
- Faculty of Health Sciences
- Language
- English
- Rights
- rights holder
- Rights
- All Rights Reserved
- Rights
- Open Access
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NMU School of Behavioural Sciences
| Thumbnail | File | Description | Size | Format | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| View Details Download | SOURCE1 | Freeman, C.pdf | 985 KB | Adobe Acrobat PDF | View Details Download |