Ep 26. Christmas, Kids, and Guns: ‘Extreme Overvalued Beliefs’ Behind a Controversial Gift

Host: David Riedman, founder of the K-12 School Shooting Database.

Guest: Dr. Tahir Rahman, associate professor of psychiatry at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri.

Reference:

• Prior podcast: Ep 16. Can psychologists treat school shootings the same way as eating disorders?

  Dr. Tahir Rahman M.D. explains why extreme overvalued beliefs--not severe mental illness--drive school shooters to commit violence.

• Psychology Today: Shifting the American Relationship With Firearms

• Book: Extreme Overvalued Beliefs: Clinical and Forensic Psychiatric Dimensions

• Forensic Psychology: School Shooters: Recognizing Extreme Overvalued Beliefs

• Psychology Today: A Warning Lesson From Lee Harvey Oswald’s Wedding Ring

Guns with inscriptions are symbols of violent ideology rather than tools for utility. School shooters and mass shooters frequently write messages on their weapons. A fixation on guns as a symbol of identity and power is a red flag for mass violence.

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David Riedman is the creator of the K-12 School Shooting Database, Chief Data Officer at a global risk management firm, and a tenure-track professor. Listen to my weekly podcast—Back to School Shootings—or my recent interviews on Freakonomics Radio, New England Journal of Medicine, and my article on CNN about AI and school security.