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Multi-Disciplinary Perspectives for Investigators . Expanding on that critique by the FBI and offering new insights, I examine and debunk the most popular myths about serial killers in the pages that follow.
    Myth #1: All Serial Killers Are Men.
    Reality: This is simply not true but it is understandable why the public would hold this erroneous belief. As late as 1998, a highly regarded former FBI profiler said “there are no female serial killers.” The news and entertainment media also perpetuate the stereotype that all serial offenders are male and that women do not engage in horrible acts of violence. When the lethality of a femme fatale is presented in book or film, she is most often portrayed as the manipulated victim of a dominant male. This popular but stereotypical media image is consistent with traditional gender myths in society which claim that boys are aggressive by nature while girls are passive. In fact, both aggressiveness and passivity can be learned through socialization and are not gender specific.
    The reality concerning the gender of serial killers is quite different than the mythology of it. Although there have been many more male serial killers than females throughout history, the presence of female serial killers is well documented in the crime data. In fact, approximately 17 percent of all serial homicides in the US are committed by women. 3 Interestingly, only 10 percent of total murdersin the US are committed by women. Therefore, relative to men, women represent a larger percentage of serial murders than all other homicide cases in the US. This is an important and revealing fact that defies the popular understanding of serial murder.
    Female serial killers share certain common characteristics with male serial killers but they also differ from them in significant ways. For example, female serial killers are far less likely to torture their victims before killing them or to practice necrophilia or cannibalism than male serial killers. This is because the psychological motives of female serial killers are generally very different than their male counterparts. As it applies to popular mythology, the news and entertainment media focus on and sensationalize the acts of violence and torture perpetrated by male serial killers. The gory tales of atrocity committed by men provide enticing entertainment content to the public. The shocking and stereotypical depictions of male serial killers serve a large consumer market, so their sensationalized stories are good for business profits. At the same time, however, media distortions do a disservice to the public. Although the graphic images of male serial killers sell countless books and movie tickets, they also perpetuate the myth that all serial killers are demented men.
    Nevertheless, there are some similarities between male and female serial killers. Most female serial killers act alone, similar to males, and they are just as effective in the business of killing as their male counterparts. In fact, based on the definition and behavioral criteria of serial homicide used in this book, females actually outperform males in terms of the average length of their killing careers. As reported in a 2011 study, the killing careers of females average between eight and eleven years while the average for male serial killers is two years. 4 In terms of their number of victims, the same 2011 study reported that female serial killers have an average of nine victims which is identical to their male counterparts. Therefore, although their average death toll is comparable, female serial killers typically claim their victims over a much longer stretch of time than males.
    There are important reasons why the length of the killing career of a female serial killer is so much longer than that of a male. Chief among them is the fact that female serial killers tend to operate under the radar of law enforcement—that is, they are less likely to have a criminal record. In addition, they