Murderers and Mindsets: A content analysis of true crime podcasts

Prafcke, Elizabeth

Undergraduate Honors Thesis

Murderers and Mindsets: A content analysis of true crime podcasts Public Deposited

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Citeable URL: https://scholar.colorado.edu/concern/undergraduate_honors_theses/4b29b726k

Abstract

In this undergraduate honors thesis research, I carried out an exploratory study of true crime podcasts and the themes that lie within them that may play a role in making this type of media so appealing to mass audiences. I utilized a qualitative content analysis where I sampled 10 different podcast shows which covered various crimes, including domestic murder, serial murder, identity theft, and revisiting cold cases. I coded for 10 themes, including horror/details, justice, masking/presentation, parenting, MO’s/patterned behaviors, taunts, emotion/diagnosis, true crime, power, and demographics. Three themes emerged as most prevalent; horror, justice, and demographic descriptions. These themes were conceptualized as subthemes under the broader theme of storytelling. I found that my results supported what I had read in literature outlining specifics of horror and true crime as genres of storytelling. The primary conclusion of this research is that true crime follows both fictional and non-fictional narrative conventions serving to draw in a wider audience. Use of these techniques can create a more compelling story for listeners and engage them as a community who shares a common experience and understanding of dramatic and real events. Though this research is strictly exploratory, it does help to inform future research in this sociological/criminological field in that it can refine the focus on the specific themes which seem to draw in large audiences that listen to true crime podcasts.

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