Within hours of any mass shooting, high-profile murder, or targeted attack, a familiar speculation about the perpetrator’s mental state begins. Social media erupts with assumptions about psychiatric conditions. Defense attorneys prepare evaluations before anyone has even been assessed. The verdict is in before the facts: This person must be mentally ill.
This reflexive response serves a comforting, but dangerous, purpose. It gives perpetrators a framework for diminished responsibility. It also provides the rest of us with the reassuring fiction that such acts stem from a diagnosable condition rather than from the darker possibilities that exist within ordinary human behavior.
As someone who performs psychiatric evaluations in forensic and correctional settings, I’ve assessed countless individuals who have committed acts of violence. What I’ve learned aligns with research. Only about 5% of all violent acts are committed by individuals with severe mental illness. In fact, individuals with severe mental illness are more likely to be victims than perpetrators.
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