How smart and manipulative are serial killers?

Most serial killers have an above-average IQ and there is a simple explanation for that. It requires a certain degree of intelligence to get away with repeated acts of murder. There are plenty of criminals who have committed murder but most of them are so sloppy and stupid that they would be caught right very quickly. Murderers like that will never have the chance to become a serial killer.

A lot of people do overestimate serial killers. They see serial killers as genius masterminds, like Hannibal Lecter. However, this is not the case. Killers like Hannibal Lecter are not a reflection of what serial killers really are but of how they like to think of themselves. Serial killers like to think that they are criminal masterminds who can outsmart the world. Serial killers with genius-level IQs are almost non-existent.

However, some serial killers are profoundly stupid. An example is Ottis Toole who had an IQ of 75.

For a school project, for more information read the ‘about’ that we wrote, we interviewed John Douglas and Jack Levin. We asked them both how smart and manipulative serial killers are. This were their answers:  

John Douglas: ‘Most have normal to above normal IQ's. They are very manipulative. Think of them as a chameleon who can blend into their environment.’

Jack Levin: ‘They cover the entire range from geniuses down to those who are intellectually challenged.  But they have street smarts that keep them on the loose for long periods of time.’

How manipulative are they?: ‘Very. They use other people as instruments for getting what they want. They are experts at impression management, looking so innocent and kind and decent when they are really monsters’

Source:

Newton, M. (2006), The encyclopedia of Serial Killers Second Edition. New York: Checkmark Books.

Interviews: Douglas, J. & Levin, J.