Mass homicide: the civil massacre.

Seven cases of mass homicide in Australia, New Zealand, and Britain between 1987 and 1996 are presented. These cases add to the world literature on these rare crimes and balance previous, mostly North American reports. These acts were committed by socially unsuccessful, self-absorbed, and resentful individuals. Lengthy fantasy comprising identification, modeling, and rehearsal preceded the incidents, even where the final acts had impulsive elements. Most had a long-standing fascination with firearms fueling their fantasies and providing the means for mass killing. Their targets were mostly unprotected strangers. Overt suicidal intent or a preparedness to die while committing the homicides was invariable. Ethological theories of status acquisition may provide a useful understanding of mass homicide.