The Psychology of Dexter - Bella DePaulo [24]
Considering the facts of the two cases, we can ascertain that generally, Dexter’s MO has evolved with experience. Learning from each kill, he added improved techniques, thereby working toward perfecting his craft. This is consistent with research on serial offenders, which suggests that learning occurs from challenges faced during the commission of crimes, as well as slip-ups that lead to arrests. In this way their MOs, like Dexter’s, are dynamic. As the show enters its fifth season, Dexter fans know their conscientious and morally minded serial killer’s current MO. Barring unusual circumstance, Dexter researches his victims and then completes a stakeout of their typical haunts. He learns their behavioral patterns and then plans the kill, finding an appropriate kill room. The victims are stalked and subdued, usually with M-99 or wire, and brought unconscious to the pre-prepared and plastic-covered kill room, where they are secured to a table and killed. Did I leave out some details? The nudity, the cut on the cheek, the blood slide, the little talk Dexter has with each victim? No. These are not part of Dexter’s MO. This is because they go beyond the acts necessary for him to carry out the murders. They are much too personal. As such, they can be considered part of his “signature.”
The Signature
The signature, sometimes referred to as a “calling card,” is another element of criminal behavior that occurs during the commission of a crime and entails all the aspects of criminal behavior that go beyond those necessary for the completion of a crime (the MO). A signature is most likely to be used by serial offenders like Dexter and is more unique to them than their MO. A comprehensive analysis of a serial killer’s signature may reveal his psychological traits, needs, and deviancy. This is because it involves the parts of the crime that are not necessary for its completion and may in fact point toward the personality and unique desires of the perpetrator. In Signature Killers, Dr. Keppel states further that the signature is something that the serial killer is “psychologically compelled to leave to satisfy himself sexually.” Surviving victims and crime scenes can provide behavioral information that lead to clues about an offender’s signature. Examples may include exceptionally detailed, abusive, or vulgar language, excessive use of force, scripted conversations or behavioral patterns, and actions taken to produce certain psychological trauma such as domination or humiliation.
Dexter has a clear signature. Viewers may see the clues that point to his identity in the signature left during the commission of many of his crimes, but Miami Metro has yet to be tipped off. In the great majority of Dexter’s murders, the trained killer and police employee does not leave a crime scene or a body behind. Like his MO, Dexter’s signature is still safe with his viewers. Let’s take a look at it now and all that it reveals about his fantasies, or, in other words, Dexter’s deep psychological needs.
To begin, we must revisit Dexter’s crimes and take note of each behavior completed in excess of that needed to kill the victim. Dexter’s signature involves all of the elements of the crime not identified above, using the cases of Mary and Mike, as part of his MO. These elements include a conversational component, psychological trauma to the victim, a particular, almost scripted time sequence or order of events, and excessive use of force postmortem.
Perhaps one of the most noteworthy aspects of our hero’s signature is the fact that he engages each of his victims in some type of conversation about their own victims. These conversations tend to occur at a particular time in the sequence of events leading up to the kill (i.e., once the victim awakens secured to the table) and are prompted by the setup of each kill room. In the case of Mary,