The typology of parricide and the role of mental illness: Data-driven approach

Emotional reactions and stigmatization after a parricide in South Tyrol, Italy, among mental health professionals and the general population, including persons with mental disorders, relatives, and persons with no direct or indirect contact

Introduction

This study was conducted on the occasion of the parricide in Bolzano (South Tyrol, Italy) in January 2021. The psychological impact of parricide on the general population and on mental health professionals has scarcely been investigated to the present day. Studies on stigmatization show differences between various groups. The aim was to analyze the emotional reactions to the parricide and the stigmatization of persons with mental disorders in the South Tyrolian population.

Methods

In September 2022, 121 mental health professionals of the Department of Psychiatry in Bolzano were surveyed using an online questionnaire. In addition, from January to March 2023, the general population of South Tyrol was invited to take part in the survey through an online-link and was divided into three groups: 267 persons with mental health problems, 855 relatives and 1,019 persons with no direct or indirect contact to people with mental problems. The validated Reported and Intended Behavior Scale (RIBS) was used together with questions on the emotional reactions to the parricide and the perceived dangerousness of psychiatric patients. Descriptive statistics, one-way Anovas as well as regressions were carried out.

Results and discussion

All groups experienced sadness the most. Relatives experienced more sadness and anger than the other groups. Over 80% of the professionals stated that psychiatric patients were not at greater risk of committing parricide. The population with no contact rated the risk higher than those affected and had the lowest level of openness (RIBS). There were no differences between genders, but there were age differences, with younger people being more stigmatizing. The results suggest that personal contact, appropriate information, and education are associated with less stigmatization.

Parricide, Mental Illness, and Parental Proximity: The Gendered Contexts of Parricide in England and Wales

Parricide is underresearched in the UK, and the contexts of this gendered form of violence are poorly understood. Heide's typology provides an advanced understanding of parricide in the United States, where the majority of parent-killings involve firearms. This article develops a UK-based analysis of the contexts of parricide, combining national statistics with police case study data (n = 57) and case review data (n = 21). Our findings indicate that mental illness plays a key role, combined with a gendered context of "parental proximity" and the simultaneous responsibilization and marginalization of parent-victims (particularly mothers), supporting the need for feminist analyses of parricide.

Intra-familiar homicides: From 2006 to 2021 in the judicial district of Milan

INTRODUCTION

The present research aims at analyzing criminological and medico-legal characteristics of intra-familiar homicides occurred in two major Italian cities (Milano and Monza) from the beginning of 2006 to the end of 2021.

METHODS

Cases were identified using the Institutional database of the Institute of Legal Medicine of Milan, where all the autopsies of victims were performed. Data about these cases were obtained from autopsies findings, preliminary investigation reports, local papers and victim relatives' interviews. In this period 11,480 autopsies were performed: 392 were homicides and, among these, 94 were confirmed as intra-familiar homicides (as a result of 84 events). Cases were classified according to the classic definition of intimate partner violence (referring only to an intra-familiar context), parricides, filicides, fratricides, familicides and grannicides. Age, sex, nationality and risk factors of the victims and perpetrators, as well as methods of murder were registered for each case. Only in some cases, motives for murder were known.

RESULTS

The most frequent type of intra-familiar homicides was intimate partner violence (41.5%), followed by parricides (16%, mainly matricides), filicides (10.7%) and fratricides (6.4%). 9.6% of the total number of events were familicides. Risk factors were frequently involved, in particular among perpetrators and in the group of parricides, while among siblicides they showed minimal relevance. Overall, psychiatric pathologies were the main risk factors involved (at least 23.8%), unlike extrafamiliar homicides, where previous criminal report or involvement in illicit traffics are frequently reported among perpetrators. This finding enlightens the difficulties of caring for a relative with a mental disorder, who can become dangerous for the domestic caregiver. Furthermore, the high number of physical illness and the advanced age of victims points out the tragical consequences of the lack of social support system for these categories of people.

METHODS

of murder were mainly cold steel (30-31.9%) and firearms (21-22.3%). However choking/manual ligature (9-9.6%), blunt force trauma inflicted using objects found on the scenario or bare handed (16-17%) and combined methods (11-11.7%) were frequently represented confirming the expected high level of impulsivity related to this kind of crime.

Adopted children who kill their adoptive parents: An examination through the lens of attachment theory

Adoptive parricide, the killing of adoptive parents by their adoptive children, is a phenomenon that garners much media attention but remains elusive in the extant literature. Previous studies on adoptive parricide have largely consisted of clinical case studies with limited theoretical explanations. The current study uses Bowlby's attachment theory as a theoretical framework to explore adoptive parricide. A content analysis was conducted of news sources to obtain data on adoptive parricide cases. Hypotheses were generated per attachment theory in the context of Heide's (2013b) parricide offender typology. Early adoptees (n = 27) were compared to late adoptees (n = 29) using Fisher's exact tests. Early adoptees were more likely to kill multiple victims, kill for selfish motives, be overindulged by adoptive parents, and not have limits set and enforced by adoptive parents. Late adoptees were more likely to report having been abused by their adoptive parents. The results were not consistent with attachment theory. Implications for the adoption process and adoptive parenting practices are presented.

Juveniles arrested for murder: A latent class analysis of male offenders

Researchers and practitioners have a need for valid and generalizable typologies of juvenile homicide offenders (JHOs) to better understand the heterogeneous nature of JHOs, and use this knowledge to inform prevention efforts. Prior studies of JHOs have typically utilized a clinical approach, which is rich in data but based on small nonrepresentative samples, or relied on larger aggregate datasets which are more reliable but have few measures available. This study aimed to address these limitations by examining the latent heterogeneity (i.e. unapparent differences) in JHOs, their victims, and incident characteristics among more than 40,000 male JHOs arrested in the United States between 1976 and 2016 using latent class analysis, to allow for the objective identification of latent taxonomies. Six distinct subtypes of male JHOs are found in the analysis, which contributes to the theoretical and substantive knowledge base regarding JHOs, and may be used to develop and implement more effective interventions and violence prevention programs for these young offenders.