Based on the Numerology of Hans Decoz

What makes someone a serial killer? Some say it stems from things they learned in childhood. Others claim there are differences in a serial killer's brain make up. Whether the answer is nature or nurture, there seems to be several common threads when you consider them as a whole. The same is true when you look at this reviled group through the lens of Numerology. Using master numerologist Hans Decoz's Name Advisor, we took a look at nine of the most infamous serial killers in history.

David Berkowitz
The Son of Sam's name is dominated by the number 7. At their best, people ruled by this number are seekers of truth and wisdom. They are spiritual and philosophical, and often find their true calling via an unconventional path. Hardly qualities you'd associate with someone who paralyzed New York City with fear in the late 1970s, but consider this: while in prison, Berkowitz became a born-again Christian. Today, he's involved in prison ministry and offers spiritual counsel to inmates. At their worst, people ruled by the number 7 are arrogant, self-centered and eccentric. Letters that Berkowitz sent to the police and to a local newspaper during his shooting spree reflect all three of those characteristics.

Dennis Rader
The man who dubbed himself the BTK killer (the letters stand for "bind, torture and kill") has a name dominated by the number 8. People ruled by this number have a winner-takes-all attitude. They are competitive, ambitious, efficient and unafraid of challenges. At their best, they are strong and have the potential for greatness. At their worst, they are destructive and without compassion. In a 1978 letter, he wrote of killing, "It's a terrible nightmare but you see, I don't lose any sleep over it." The number 8 implies that Rader was bound for fame and recognition of some sort -- he just chose infamy instead.

Ted Bundy
This name is dominated by the number 5. People ruled by this number are risk takers -- daring and courageous. They have sharp intuition and even sharper intelligence, which allows them to adapt to new circumstances quickly. They have excellent reflexes, and can make the most important decisions in seconds. This may explain how he was able to elude authorities for so long, and also how he was able to escape custody not once, but twice. The number 5 also represents someone youthful, dynamic and energetic, qualities that (along with his good looks) may have helped him earn his victims' trust.

Jeffrey Dahmer
Like David Berkowitz, Jeffrey Dahmer's name is dominated by the number 7. And also like Berkowitz, Dahmer became a born-again Christian while in prison. The difference lies in Dahmer's base vibration number (underlying tone or rhythm of the name), which is 9. People ruled by this number are idealists. At their best, they can reflect the true nature of all mankind. At their worst, they are impractical and misguided, lacking common sense and preferring to live in their fantasies. This could give someone like Dahmer the means to rationalize an existence of murder, necrophilia and cannibalism.

About the Numerologist
Hans Decoz has been a professional numerologist since 1982. He lectures and offers courses and personal consultations. Hans is currently working on his second book. His first book, Numerology; Key To Your Inner Self, with Tom Monte, was published in 1994 by Avery Publishing Group, NY. He currently resides in Arizona.