Violence in communities from mass attacks is a growing problem in the United States. Since the beginning of 2023 the number of incidents of gun violence in the United States against groups of individuals has risen significantly, with an average of more than one gun violence act per day. As of this writing, there have been 130 incidents of mass shootings in 29 states (for specific information about incidents this year see: https://www.gunviolencearchive.org/reports/mass-shooting).

In January, 2023, the IPA Disaster Response Committee urged IPA members to attend a 3-hour training to learn from psychologist Dr. Peter Langman about The Minds, Lives and Motivations of Mass Attackers. Along with 2000 others, I participated in the training hosted by the Pennsylvania Psychological Association and the Council of Executives and Provincial Psychological Associations (CESPPA) organization. Dr. Langman shared his research on the dynamics of mass violence. While he believes that “no one profile for a perpetrator” exists, he shared some of the knowledge he has gleaned from his research into perpetrators of mass violence. On behalf of the Disaster Response Committee, I am sharing with you some of what he taught us.

Dr. Langman identifies 3 types of psychological typology found underlying perpetrator’s behavior: Traumatized, Psychotic, and Psychopathic. He describes traumatized attackers as: unstable, chaotic, and often the survivors of abuse. He notes psychotic perpetrators often meet the criteria for schizophrenia or schizotypal disorder. Some of the psychopathic traits he identifies are extreme narcissism; rejecting rules, laws, morality; callousness (lacking empathy, guilt, remorse); sadistic; and identifying as a victim. He identifies psychopathic types as either charming, charismatic, deceptive; abrasive and belligerent; or quietly callous and immoral.

He noted loss, conflict, stress, falling short of personal goals, thwarted aspirations and/or grandiose aspirations, failure to establish or maintain intimate or meaningful relationships, and failure to establish or maintain a job/career are often factors in the lives of attackers. He observed that violence can serve a transformational purpose for the perpetrator, moving one from a place of powerlessness to becoming powerful, known, and to gaining personal significance.

He described those committing this kind of violence are “not just ordinary people” but have underlying pathology and often have a sense of having been a victim of injustice and tend to “store up grievances” that lead them to engage in violent behavior.

He shared 3 categories by which perpetrators generally justify their violent behavior:

Personal rejection: Retaliation against specific individuals or groups of people who have caused them harm or “wronged” them. This example is often seen in school shootings or work-place shootings.

Vicarious grievance: Retaliation toward individuals, who may individually be innocent, but who are associated with a group who committed a “wrong” against a group to whom the perpetrator feels related or connected. An example of this was seen in the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building (4/19/1995), in Oklahoma City which was justified as violence in retaliation for federal agents’ actions in Waco Texas. The bombing took place on the anniversary of the deadly fire ending the Waco standoff (4/19/1993).

Fictional grievance: Retaliation against targeted individuals or targeted group based on paranoid beliefs, delusions, or thoughts of conspiracy against the perpetrator or group with whom they belong. Examples of this are racially motivated mass attacks based on delusions. For example, when a white man killed nine Black people on June 17, 2015, he reportedly stated “I have to do this because you’re raping our women and y’all taking over the world,” feeling he “had to” kill them, believed Hitler would be canonized as a saint, believed Jewish people were a threat and “trying to destroy Whites.” Another shooter in 2019 killed individuals in mosques and synagogues in the San Diego area. He wrote in his manifesto, “Every Jew is responsible for the meticulously planned genocide of the European race.”

Dr. Langman encourages psychologists to consider conducting threat assessments of individuals who present at risk and identify dangers based on their presentation and history. He has published multiple articles, books, and offers online resources to help us better learn how to do so. Here are a few:

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1359178908000839

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/1745-9133.12468

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/j.2161-1912.1995.tb00278.x

https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-1-4614-5526-4_6

https://www.goodreads.com/author/list/1482067.Peter_Langman

https://www.apa.org/monitor/2017/11/conversation-langman

https://schoolshooters.info/

Additional resources:

• Disaster Response Resources on IPA’s website
  • Mass Shooting Resources

Please contact Ashley Freeman, chair of the Disaster Response Committee at ashley@ashleyfreemanphd.com, with any questions or to get involved with the IPA Disaster Response Committee.

Thanks to Dr. Thomas, writing on behalf of the Disaster Response Committee! 

As part of my role on the Disaster Response Committee, I recently completed The National Child Traumatic Stress Network’s (NCTSN) Psychological First Aid (PFA) Online course. The course is about 5 hours in length and can be completed entirely online. The course reviews how to deliver PFA in the wake of a disaster with the goal of reducing trauma-related distress. PFA is evidence-informed, and it can be used with adults, children, adolescents, and families. 

As a psychologist or trainee in psychology, you may be wondering what you might find helpful about a training in PFA. Each day on the news, we hear about global, national, and local disasters that affect us and those we serve. These events include natural disasters, mass shootings, wars, and acts of terrorism, to name a few. PFA draws from research regarding evidence-based interventions to provide a comprehensive toolkit for helping those in the immediate aftermath of a disaster. Some of the skills in the training may be familiar, such as using empathy and warmth, while other skills are specific to the disaster setting.

A major takeaway from this training, and an important reminder, is the critical role that social support plays in the immediate aftermath of disaster. After acclimating to a disaster response setting, a PFA provider quickly identifies available resources to facilitate safety, comfort, and stabilization. Helping to link disaster survivors with sources of support establishes connection and engagement with an individual’s community. Despite a disaster being an inherent deviation from a person’s norm, connection with supportive others can offer some semblance of familiarity. Moreover, the benefit of social support as a buffer against stress is well-established in other research contexts as well. 

Finally, a PFA provider helps disaster survivors identify effective coping strategies. The goal of the PFA provider in this context is not to begin a course of psychotherapy, but to help the survivor identify already-existing coping strategies. A referral to psychotherapy can also be made if the survivor needs more support. The goal of a PFA provider is to facilitate stabilization, connection, and engagement in this critical window. Empirically supported therapies (e.g., exposure therapy, EMDR) are to be used later in the individual’s recovery, if necessary. The shift from long-term coping to immediate coping is an important mindset that will help survivors to find PFA relevant, applicable, and practical in the context of a disaster. 

Why might a psychologist want to complete the PFA training, particularly when juggling busy personal and professional schedules, many responsibilities, and a feeling that there is not enough time in the day? The disasters we see on the news, whether near or far, are having a psychological impact on those affected, and as psychologists, we have training and skills that may help to minimize the long-term adverse consequences. Whether in our local or global communities, there are indications that mental health has suffered during the COVID-19 pandemic. Previous research indicates that early intervention tends to result in more positive long-term outcomes. How can we help Iowans navigate disasters and engage with our communities in a meaningful way? Psychological First Aid is a good place to start. 

Several free trainings on Psychological First Aid and Disaster Mental Health are available online:

• Free, five-hour Psychological First Aid Training offered by the National Child Traumatic Stress Network. Psychological First Aid (PFA) Online is a 5-hour interactive online course that helps participants learn the core actions of PFA and describes ways to apply them in different post-disaster scenarios and with different survivor needs. 

• Free, one-hour webinar on Psychological First Aid (PFA) facilitated by Dr. Jerry Walker of the Nebraska Psychological Association. Click here to view.

• Psychological First Aid for Schools (PFA-S). This webinar offers information on how PFA-S helps to reduce the distress that school communities can experience after a disaster or violent event.  

• Click here to access more disaster resources for providers.

Please contact Ashley Freeman, chair of the Disaster Response Committee, at ashley@ashleyfreemanphd.com with any questions or to get involved with disaster response.

Today, December 14th, marks the 10-year anniversary of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. The shooting took place in Newtown, Connecticut, and resulted in the deaths of 6 adults and 20 children between the ages of 6 and 7 years old. It marks the deadliest mass shooting at an elementary school in U.S. history. The deadliest school shooting in history occurred at Virginia Tech University on 4/16/2007 and resulted in 33 dead and 17 injured. Horrifically, mass shootings have continued to increase over the past several years and take place in a variety of locations beyond the school setting. 

More recently was the mass shooting at Club Q in Colorado Springs that has been deemed a hate crime targeting the LGBTQ+ community and resulted in the deaths of five people and dozens injured. A recent Press Release from APA noted, “The mass shooting in Colorado Springs followed the horrific attacks at the University of Virginia, a drumbeat that continues without fail. In November alone, there have been at least 27 reported mass shootings with more than 40 victims dead.”

The Disaster Response Committee is committed to raising awareness of the impact of mass shootings as well as the psychological, social, and policy factors related to these violent acts. To that end, IPA has partnered with other state associations to provide the online training “The Minds, Lives, and Motivations of Mass Attackers” scheduled for 1/27/2023 from 1-4pm CST.

Click here to register for The Minds, Lives, and Motivations of Mass Attackers training

Click here for resources on Mass Shootings

Click here for resources on Gun Violence Prevention

Sandy Hook Elementary Mass Shooting Victims

Club Q Mass Shooting Victims