Arsonist and pyromaniac terms refer to the act of crime.
Arsonist and pyromaniac are often used in similar ways, but they differ in meaning and also differ on the mindset of the person.
They are intentional. There is a difference between the criminal mindset or the behavior of the person and the impulse control disorder. They both are associated with fire settings.
Arsonist vs Pyromaniac
The main difference between An Arsonist and a Pyromaniac is that an arsonist is a person who sets a fire intentionally so that he/she can harm someone. It is a violent crime that is done for monetary purposes or for revenge, whereas a Pyromania is an illness that is characterized by impulses of a mentally disabled person, and he/she sets fires because of their impulses.
An arsonist is a person who sets fire on someone else’s property for vengeance to get satisfaction. This is a crime. They do so to get revenge and sometimes for the insurance money. It is a common disorder among people.
A pyromaniac is a person who intentionally sets fire on someone else’s property for satisfaction. This is a rare clinical disorder. They get tension before setting the fire and get gratification after doing so. It is a rare disorder among people.
Comparison Table Between an Arsonist and a Pyromaniac
| Parameters of Comparison | Arsonist | Pyromaniac |
| Definition | An arsonist is a person who sets fire on someone else’s property for vengeance to get satisfaction. | A pyromaniac is a person who intentionally sets fire on someone else’s property for satisfaction. |
| Disorder | It is a common disorder among people. | It is a rare disorder among people. |
| Crime | This is considered a crime. | This is not considered a crime. |
| Objective | A person with arson or an arsonist is a person who sets fire or burns down someone else’s property for revenge or vengeance or is trying to collect the insurance money. | A person who has pyromaniac doesn’t have a desire to hurt someone, does not have a desire for monetary gains. |
| Who does this | Arsonists are people who have troubled childhood. | A pyromaniac is someone who has a mental illness or has a gambling disorder or has been sexually or physically abused. |
What is an Arsonist?
Arson is a criminal act of burning the property of someone for improper purposes. This act can be called a terrorist act as it is a method of destruction and loss to human lives and is a crime that is only revenge-driven.
Arson is considered a crime by the law because the person who does this act is fully in their senses, and this act is done by them purposefully in the name of revenge or vengeance.
An arsonist is a person who creates a large amount of damage by setting fire on someone else’s property in order to take revenge.
An arsonist has a criminal mindset who wants to satisfy his vengeance. Many arsonists are people who had a troubled childhood, like abuse or alcoholism.
Thomas A. Sweatt is a convicted serial arsonist. He set over 350 fired around the capital of the USA around 2003 and 2004.
What is a Pyromaniac?
Pyromania is a rare clinical disorder. This act is not considered a crime because this act is done by people because of the tension and the excitement or the pleasure.
They are people who set fires because of their impulses or mindsets. They set fire purposefully on more than one occasion. They get excited before the act and intense pleasure and gratification after the act.
A pyromaniac is someone who watches fire in the neighborhood or set off false alarms. They have an obsession with fire. They do not set fire for monetary purposes. They are not based on intellectual disability.
It is a crime with a wave of impulses. They suffer from impulse control disorder that pushes them to accomplish these acts because of the way they feel while doing this activity.
Other pyromania symptoms include curiosity to fire, watching fires in the neighborhood, and gaining pleasure in doing so. These symptoms cannot be responses to delusions or hallucinations.
Main Differences Between an Arsonist and a Pyromaniac
- An arsonist is a person who has a motivation or a feeling of revenge on someone else, whereas a pyromaniac is someone who has a psychological disorder.
- Arson is common in some countries, whereas pyromaniac is a rare disorder found in people.
- A person with arson or an arsonist is a person who sets fire or burns down someone else’s property for revenge or vengeance or is trying to collect the insurance money, whereas a person who has pyromaniac don’t have a desire to hurt someone, do not have a desire for monetary gains.
- Arson is a crim, whereas pyromania is a psychiatric diagnosis.
- Arson is done by a person who is looking for revenge, but the pyromaniac sets fire because of the feelings he gets afterward.
- Arsonists are people who have troubled childhood, whereas a pyromaniac is someone who has a mental illness or has a gambling disorder or has been sexually or physically abused.
Conclusion
Both of these terms refer to the act of crime because they cause harm to someone’s property.
An arsonist has a criminal mindset who wants to satisfy his vengeance. They set fire in their senses to hurt someone, for revenge, or sometimes for monetary purposes. This act can be called a terrorist activity.
A pyromaniac is someone who watches fire in the neighborhood or set off false alarms. They have an obsession with fire. They do not set fire for monetary purposes. They set fire purposefully on more than one occasion because they get excited before the act and intense pleasure and gratification after the act.
References
- https://psycnet.apa.org/psycinfo/1967-12122-001/
- https://bmcpsychiatry.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1471-244x-5-47