Presidential Assassination Syndrome

Rothstein, David A.

doi:10.1001/archpsyc.1966.01730150036006

Cited by 8 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 3 publications

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“…This, again, is not t o ignore the effects of Bremer's o m personal private life, intrapsychic conflicts, and interpersonal relationships nor to deny that his fantasies and plans antedated May 8. In many ways the personal data revealed about Bremer fit the presidential assassination syndrome as I had earlier described it (Rothstein, 1964. I will here focus only on one aspect which also ties in with the theme of this paper.…”

Section: Postscript: the Blockadementioning

confidence: 73%

“…In my original study of the threateners and of Oswald (Rothstein, 1964 I had found the military history of the president threateners t o parallel that of Oswald, and felt this t o be an important component in the genesis of the presidential assassination syndrome. A t that time I discussed it mainly in terms of the subjects turning to the government to meet needs that should have been met earlier in the family situation.…”

Section: Thecoupmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…I felt that perhaps, if his abdication had produced such a feeling of loss in my wife and me, almost as if he had died, it might have elicited a similar feeling in others, perhaps in someone already predisposed by the dynamics I had described as the presidential assassination syndrome. I knew that those prisoners at the United States Medical Center for Federal Prisoners (MCFP) whom I had interviewed in connection with their having threatened the president (Rothstein, 1964) had, in response to the assassination of President Kennedy, seemed t o show anxiety stemming from seeing the impulse actually put into action, a fact that threatened their own already tenuous defenses and stirred up anxiety that their own impulse, too, could be acted upon. There was an underlying identification with the assassin apparent in most of the threateners.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…He also mentions newspaper reports of cases in which soldiers on furlough voluntarily returned to the battle line upon hearing of the president's death and suggests that one component in the soldiers' action was a wish to die. A wish t o die was a strong component of the presidential assassination syndrome as I formulated it (Rothstein, 1964).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Obviously he had already obtained a rifle. In previous papers I have examined over variables in the background, earlier life, and immediate precipitating factors with respect t o president threateners and Lee Harvey Oswald (Rothstein, 1964. I also have stressed the importance of contributions from the victim, from the leader (Rothstein, 1971a(Rothstein, , 1971b.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Reflections on A Contagion of Assassination*

Rothstein

1973

Suicide & Life Threat Behav

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Intrapsychic factors and events in close interpersonal relationships are supplemented by events in the political climate which can affect a potential assassin so as to lower his defenses against homicidal assassination impulses and facilitate or precipitate an overt act. Such events can include another assassination, a natural death, or an abdication of a president or leader. The “contagious” nature of killing is discussed with respect to previous and recent assassinations. The paper explores the potential effects upon James Earl Ray of President Johnson's “abdication” speech, upon Lee Harvey Oswald of the assassination of President Ngo Dinh Diem of South Vietnam, and upon Arthur Bremer of President Nixon's Vietnam escalation speech.

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Section: Postscript: the Blockadementioning

confidence: 73%

Section: Thecoupmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Reflections on A Contagion of Assassination*

Rothstein

1973

Suicide & Life Threat Behav

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Assassination

Wilson¹,

Scholes²

2013

The Encyclopedia of Criminology and Criminal Justice

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Assassination research occupies a relatively small area of the literature, and progress has been hindered by anomalies in research findings thrown up by variations in the person being targeted, the geographic region, and whether or not the planned attack is actually completed. As such, it is related to, and draws on, studies in homicide, stalking, and terrorism research. Assassination research initially grew out of attempts to “profile” the personality and background characteristics of those who had attacked prominent persons, but over time, research has evolved to take a more risk‐focused approach.

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The description and classification of presidential threateners

Logan¹,

Reuterfors

Bohn

et al. 1984

Behavioral Sci & The Law

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Presidential threateners who received court-ordered psychiatric evaluations at the Medical Center for Federal Prisoners in 1981 and 1982 were studied. Using data from psychiatric reports and other background documents, the cases were analyzed according to demographic, legal, and psychiatric variables. Cases were also classified according to a system based on the characteristics of the threatener and the context in which the threat was made.

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Presidential Assassination Syndrome

Cited by 8 publications

References 3 publications

Reflections on A Contagion of Assassination*

Reflections on A Contagion of Assassination*

Assassination

The description and classification of presidential threateners

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