The problem with labels, is that they don’t always fit exactly. After the Columbine school shooting there was a lot of debate and discussion as to whether Klebold and Harris had been bullied – and there was a reluctance to cast them in the role of the “victim” because although this wouldn’t have excused them of their violence, it would have opened the way for a simplistic argument to be made, that their actions were somewhat justified. Whether Klebold and Harris were bullied – in the true and complete sense of the world – is unclear, however what is evident, is that their social lives were lived on the fringe of the larger school community. It is also unclear as to what initiated this social exclusion; did they remove themselves, did others actively exclude them, or was it a mixture of the two and to what degree etc.? When we are attempting to identify risk factors and warning signs of future violent acts, behaviors rather than labels are better indicators and predictors. In this article I want to look at some of the conditions and thought patterns that lead to violent fantasies. This doesn’t mean that everyone who thinks about acting out violently will, but this is the starting point for those who do. All violent acts start with a rewarding fantasy whether that is a street robbery or a mass shooting and/or killing spree. Some people become surprised and shocked at some stage of their violent illusions, and pull away, whilst others lean into them, and begin feeding them – until they get to a point where they have put themselves in a position where they have no choice but to act upon them.

A common theme in many acts of predatory violence i.e., that which is premeditated and planned, is the existence of a permanent exclusion narrative. If you grow up in a deprived environment, where there is a lack of resources, such as good educational facilities, a lack of employment opportunities etc. you may conclude that you will never have the opportunity to better your situation by legal means i.e., you have been permanently excluded from having a good job, a nice house, and a decent car etc., and as such you may turn to illegal means to achieve these things. This idea is at the heart of Merton’s Strain Theory. However, Merton was researching and writing in the 1950’s, looking at crime and violence from a largely capitalistic/economic and structural perspective. He wasn’t so much concerned with a broad array of different “social” strains, that weren’t societal at the macro-level. Robert Agnew, several decades later extended the idea of “strain” to include, anything which created personal strain/trauma e.g., a person may act out violently after experiencing the death of a parent/guardian etc. However, one type of strain that is a stable predictor of violence, especially that which targets a group, and/or a larger unfamiliar population – such as with mass shootings/killings – is the development of a permanent exclusion narrative i.e., the belief that we will never be accepted, as ourselves, into a larger community, in which we want to belong. There are those who don’t want to fit into “normal” society such as those that belong to outlaw biker gangs; however, they do want to be accepted by these groups. Individuals who feel and believe that they will never be accepted by any larger group, may then start to think about retaliation, which could include either or both suicidal and homicidal ideation.

Often this retaliatory fantasy will fixate and focus on a small group. Possibly a group of individuals that the wider community respect and promote e.g., at Columbine High School in Colorado both the school and the wider community were somewhat fixated on the school’s football team. It could have been that initially this group became the focus of the fantasy. However, such fantasies often grow and come to include a much wider and broader group, such as everyone, including staff and students who had an association with the high school. Often this “rage” and “injustice” will spread to include anyone who may be deemed complicit in the exclusion. In certain instances, an institution such as a school, workplace, or restaurant/bar/club/bar, may come to represent the exclusion, and so itself becomes the target. It is important to note that exclusion from a group/community may occur not because a group actively, or even tacitly, refuses to engage with an individual(s) e.g., there is a belief that the serial killer, Colin Ireland, lacked the requisite social skills to be part of the gay community in London, and this was part of his motivation for targeting gay men. It is also possible because he identified himself as being heterosexual, that he was in a state of turmoil regarding his sexuality, wanting to come out and be active in the London gay scene, but unable to reconcile himself with that. Ultimately, we are unlikely to ever find out whether this is the case or not, however we should understand that exclusion isn’t always a deliberate or active act.

Permanent exclusion narratives develop over time, and those who identify as being permanently socially excluded i.e., never being accepted, choose to use violence as a response whether that is to themselves and/or others. Human beings are social creatures, and the conclusion/realization that isolation is a permanent thing can become too much for individuals to bear. Solitary confinement is often used as an extreme punishment within the penal system, however those subjected to it understand that it is usually a temporary affair. Even so, being socially isolated in this way increases the risk of suicide either during confinement, or afterwards, significantly. It is easy to forget that lack of inclusion (when it is actively done) is a part of bullying, because it’s the absence of something unlike physical and verbal bullying, however it is perhaps one of the most severe forms of bullying, especially when it results in a permanent exclusion narrative.