Running amok and spree killing

In Running Amok: A Modern Perspective on a Culture-Bound Syndrome Manuel L. Saint Martin explains why mengamok is the equivalent to today's spree killings, and not a cultural syndrome. Instead both are rooted in mental illness or mood or personality disorders.

Running amok is considered a rare culture-bound syndrome by current psychiatric classification systems, but there is evidence that it occurs frequently in modern industrialized societies. The historical origins of running amok as a psychiatric condition are reviewed in this article, and its relevance to modern day episodes of violent behavior is discussed. Psychotic illnesses, personality disorders, and mood disorders are all possible causes of amok, and the identification and treatment of patients who are at risk for manifesting violent behavior are discussed.