Why so many killers are male

CNN ^ | June 18, 2015 | James Garbarino

[PROCON]

(CNN)—It looks like it has happened again. A young male has allegedly killed. In this case it is nine people at a church in South Carolina. Anyone who is paying attention hears the news and thinks, "Here we go again." But why? After spending 20 years interviewing killers as a psychological expert witness in murder cases I have some thoughts about this.

Males are disproportionately over-represented in the ranks of America's killers -- about 90%, in fact. Why is that? Some of it appears to lie in the biological vulnerability of males. About 30% of males (versus 9% of females) have a form of the MAOA gene that impairs their ability to deal effectively and pro-socially with stressful situations (like living in an abusive family). Thus, the vast majority of males who have this genetic vulnerability and who live in abusive families end up engaging in a chronic pattern of aggression, bad behavior, acting out and violating the rights of others by the time they are 10 years old.

It's a childhood pattern that is often the gateway to seriously violent delinquency and perhaps murder. This genetic vulnerability is part of a larger pattern for males. But this is only a part, perhaps a small part, of the larger story.

[Tijeras_Slim]

This is a side of you I am unfamiliar with... ;)

[oldasrocks]

Simple solution: Castrate all feral children.

[Henry Hnyellar]

Males are disproportionately over-represented in the ranks of America's killers -- about 90%, in fact. Why is that? The justice system is clearly biased against males! Burn it down. /s