The Macdonald Triad (also referred to as the Homicidal/Sociopathy/Ego Triad) is a widely accepted theory that suggests the prevalence of three specific traits are predictive of future violent behavior. These behavioral traits: fire starting, enuresis (bed-wetting), and cruelty to animals are viewed as warning signs of imminent criminal activity. This triad has been popularized as a potential tool to identify and intervene with individuals capable of serial crime, sadistic sexual acts, and/or homicide (serial or otherwise). Through limited and questionable research, the presence of these behavior traits has also been linked to a level of malformation in personality. Despite obvious shortcomings in its science, this triadic trend is still commonly
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Many who refer to this purported phenomenon will attribute its introduction to the 1963 paper, “The Threat to Kill” submitted to the American Journal of Psychiatry by John Macdonald. In this paper, Macdonald (1963) provides information regarding a qualitative study he conducted on 48 patients labeled psychotic and 52 patients labeled nonpsychotic, ranging from ages 11 to 83-years-old. It is in this paper that Macdonald discloses, “the triad of childhood cruelty to animals, firesetting and enuresis was often encountered” in his most “sadistic” patients (1963, p. 126-127). It should be noted that Macdonald’s study was merely referencing those who threatened to commit violence rather than those who had been convicted of homicide or worse. It should also be noted that this theory was not empirically driven as Macdonald uses very limited, if any, statistical support for his claims, heavily weighs his own clinically based impressions, and fails to descriptively define the terms he references. In the above example, it is unclear how many of the patients included in the study were labeled as “sadistic” or what he specifically meant by “often” (Ryan, 2009). Therefore, the information Macdonald attempts to provide is susceptible to misuse and …show more content…
Since the triad’s introduction, research has been conducted on each individual trait rather than the triad as a whole (Ryan, 2009). According to an empirically based study conducted by Leary, Southard, Hill III, & Ashman (2017), which utilized data from 280 serial killers, there was a strong indication of a “significant relationship among enuresis, fire setting, and animal cruelty to key dimensions of parental physical and psychological abuse, respectively”. This strongly suggests a link between individual triadic elements and exposure to childhood maltreatment, implying that parental abuse is a better predictor of future violent tendencies (Leary, Southard, Hill III, & Ashman, 2017; Ryan, 2009). Yet, it needs reminding that we cant confirm such a cause and effect relationship and that “it could be argued that participation in triadic behaviors prompts abuse from parents, or even an unknown variable could be mediating these factors” (Leary, Southard, Hill III, & Ashman, 2017, p.
Many who refer to this purported phenomenon will attribute its introduction to the 1963 paper, “The Threat to Kill” submitted to the American Journal of Psychiatry by John Macdonald. In this paper, Macdonald (1963) provides information regarding a qualitative study he conducted on 48 patients labeled psychotic and 52 patients labeled nonpsychotic, ranging from ages 11 to 83-years-old. It is in this paper that Macdonald discloses, “the triad of childhood cruelty to animals, firesetting and enuresis was often encountered” in his most “sadistic” patients (1963, p. 126-127). It should be noted that Macdonald’s study was merely referencing those who threatened to commit violence rather than those who had been convicted of homicide or worse. It should also be noted that this theory was not empirically driven as Macdonald uses very limited, if any, statistical support for his claims, heavily weighs his own clinically based impressions, and fails to descriptively define the terms he references. In the above example, it is unclear how many of the patients included in the study were labeled as “sadistic” or what he specifically meant by “often” (Ryan, 2009). Therefore, the information Macdonald attempts to provide is susceptible to misuse and …show more content…
Since the triad’s introduction, research has been conducted on each individual trait rather than the triad as a whole (Ryan, 2009). According to an empirically based study conducted by Leary, Southard, Hill III, & Ashman (2017), which utilized data from 280 serial killers, there was a strong indication of a “significant relationship among enuresis, fire setting, and animal cruelty to key dimensions of parental physical and psychological abuse, respectively”. This strongly suggests a link between individual triadic elements and exposure to childhood maltreatment, implying that parental abuse is a better predictor of future violent tendencies (Leary, Southard, Hill III, & Ashman, 2017; Ryan, 2009). Yet, it needs reminding that we cant confirm such a cause and effect relationship and that “it could be argued that participation in triadic behaviors prompts abuse from parents, or even an unknown variable could be mediating these factors” (Leary, Southard, Hill III, & Ashman, 2017, p.