In the romantic love films of our time, the beautiful, female protagonist always falls in love with the wrong man. In the end, however, she still gets the curve and decides for the nice guy next door. I have to admit that the bad boys already have that certain something. In real life, I still don't want to be with a rock star and his drug problems. I do not need a man who is so free that he does not see any need to reply to my messages, to keep to agreements or to try to do anything about me, but I can still make him sexy with this attitude Find.
Actually, it's not like that …
But why do so many women like nasty guys? Is it the kick? Boredom? Self-mortification or the well-known helper syndrome? After all, we've all had this phase of altruistic sacrifice in the hope that HE would change. And in my own little Hollywood film, I was the only woman who could save this lost soul in the guise of an asshole. Unfortunately, there was no sensitive being hidden under the robe who only wanted to be recognized and loved.
But why is that now? Are we looking for self confirmation? Is it because of our complexes? In the best case scenario – as in the film – you will eventually grow beyond these men, find confirmation in yourself and one good Man.
But if that doesn't happen and only felons, rapists and murderers can win the heart, there may be a disease behind it that psychologists call hybristophilia.
Hybristophilia – what is it?
Hybristophilia, also known as Bonnie and Clyde syndrome, is the term used to describe the clinical picture in which those affected are attracted to serious criminals. Women primarily develop romantic feelings for sex offenders and murderers. The associated risks, especially for your own life, are what make it so special. The sexual component in particular plays an important role: what others find repulsive triggers arousal in them.
Causes of Hybristophilia
Although the disease has a large presence in the media, little research has been done into hybristophilia.
Psychologists suspect the reasons for sexual inclination primarily in:
- lonliness
- low self-esteem
- Childhood Violence and Abuse Experience
- an overly pronounced helper syndrome
Love at a safe distance: The attraction of potential danger
If the lover sits behind bars, there is a power gap where the woman is in control: she does not have to worry about her husband cheating or hurting her. There can be no everyday life that kills love. Visits are rare and are up to the free decision of the woman. At the same time, the belief that the partner could change not only maintains affection but also the feeling of being needed. And not to forget: Many people find the evil fascinating – that alone says the large number of crime series on television. In women with hybristophilia, it is no longer just fascination but admiration.
Bonnie and Clyde: Fascination Outlaw
In addition to passive hybristophilia, which manifests itself primarily through sexual attraction to a criminal, there is the active form of the disease, albeit less frequently. That means: sometimes the partner becomes an accomplice. Crimes committed together ensure a very special bond.
The fact that the symptom does not only affect individual cases is shown above all by the countless love letters that reach prominent murderers, such as the American mass murderer Charles Manson, who died in 2017, and the Norwegian gunman Anders Breivik. There are always weddings in the courtroom.