1
|
Stockner M, Wenter A, Obexer A, Gualtieri I, Merler F, Bennato D, Conca A. 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. Front Public Health 2024; 12:1388842. [PMID: 39011331 PMCID: PMC11247646 DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1388842] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2024] [Accepted: 06/11/2024] [Indexed: 07/17/2024] Open
Abstract
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.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Mara Stockner
- Department of Dynamic and Clinical Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy
| | - Anna Wenter
- Department of Psychology, Institute of Psychology and Sports, University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
| | - Artur Obexer
- Department of Psychiatry, Health District of Bolzano (SABES-ASDAA), Bolzano, Italy
| | - Isabella Gualtieri
- Department of Psychiatry, Health District of Bolzano (SABES-ASDAA), Bolzano, Italy
| | - Francesca Merler
- Department of Psychiatry, Health District of Bolzano (SABES-ASDAA), Bolzano, Italy
| | - Davide Bennato
- Department of Humanities, University of Catania, Catania, Italy
| | - Andreas Conca
- Department of Psychiatry, Health District of Bolzano (SABES-ASDAA), Bolzano, Italy
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Bojanić L, Flynn S, Gianatsi M, Kapur N, Appleby L, Shaw J. The typology of parricide and the role of mental illness: Data-driven approach. Aggress Behav 2020; 46:516-522. [PMID: 32725641 DOI: 10.1002/ab.21906] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/08/2019] [Revised: 05/19/2020] [Accepted: 05/31/2020] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
Parricide is a rare type of homicide in which mental illness is often an important factor. The aims of this study were (a) to describe the characteristics of parricide offenders with a focus on mental illness and clinical care and (b) to examine Heide's widely used typology of parricide through a data-driven approach. We analyzed all homicides in England and Wales between 1997 and 2014. Parricide offenders in our sample were most often male, unmarried, and unemployed, with a third of offenders diagnosed with schizophrenia; 28% had been in contact with mental health services before the offense. The latent class analysis resulted in three types of parricide offenders: middle-aged with affective disorder, previously abused, and seriously mentally Ill, which confirmed, to an extent, Heide's typology. Health and social care services should actively engage with carers of people with mental illness and support to those caring for older relatives and victims of abuse.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Lana Bojanić
- National Confidential Inquiry Into Suicide and Safety in Mental Health, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health University of Manchester Manchester UK
| | - Sandra Flynn
- National Confidential Inquiry Into Suicide and Safety in Mental Health, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health University of Manchester Manchester UK
| | - Myrsini Gianatsi
- National Confidential Inquiry Into Suicide and Safety in Mental Health, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health University of Manchester Manchester UK
| | - Navneet Kapur
- National Confidential Inquiry Into Suicide and Safety in Mental Health, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health University of Manchester Manchester UK
- Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust Manchester UK
| | - Louis Appleby
- National Confidential Inquiry Into Suicide and Safety in Mental Health, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health University of Manchester Manchester UK
- Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust Manchester UK
| | - Jenny Shaw
- National Confidential Inquiry Into Suicide and Safety in Mental Health, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health University of Manchester Manchester UK
- Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust Manchester UK
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Adinkrah M, Jenkins E. Sororicides in Ghana: A Study of Homicidal Aggression Against Sisters. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF OFFENDER THERAPY AND COMPARATIVE CRIMINOLOGY 2019; 63:1265-1288. [PMID: 30477364 DOI: 10.1177/0306624x18814169] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
Sororicide has received scarce attention in the homicide literature. This is particularly the case for sororicide incidents occurring in the nonindustrialized, non-Western world. To help address this gap in the literature and extend the study of sororicides, the current exploratory, descriptive study examined the major characteristics of 18 media-reported sororicides that occurred in Ghana from 1990 to 2017, including the sociodemographic characteristics of victims and offenders, victim-offender relationship, incident location, modus operandi, motive, and criminal justice outcomes. The results show that sororicide represents a minuscule proportion of all homicides that occur in the country annually. Brothers were overwhelmingly the perpetrators of sororicide, accounting for 17 of the 18 killings. The findings indicate that a substantial proportion of the sororicides occurred in the context of disputes over money, land, property, or inheritance. Two brothers killed sisters they suspected of maleficent witchcraft.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Ebony Jenkins
- 1 Central Michigan University, Mount Pleasant, MI, USA
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Adinkrah M. Matricide in Ghana: Victims, Offenders, and Offense Characteristics. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF OFFENDER THERAPY AND COMPARATIVE CRIMINOLOGY 2018; 62:1925-1946. [PMID: 28474966 DOI: 10.1177/0306624x17706891] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
At present, scholarship on matricide across many regions of the non-Western world is lacking. For instance, in Ghana, despite the intermittent, yet recurrent, availability of media reports describing matricidal acts over the past quarter century, no existing study has systematically analyzed matricidal killings in the West African nation. To contribute to the literature and extend knowledge about matricide and other forms of lethal violence in Ghana, this article presents the results of an analysis of 21 matricidal acts that occurred in Ghana from 1990 to 2016. Issues studied include demographic characteristics of assailants and victims, modus operandi, temporal and spatial aspects, as well as the motives and circumstances surrounding the crime. The results show that sons were substantially more likely than daughters to kill their mothers, matricide offenders were more likely to suffer from serious psychiatric disorders, matricide offenses generally occurred in the victim's home, and all cases of matricide were characterized by massive physical force and extreme violence. Matricide offenses in Ghana differed from matricides in Western nations in four important respects: (a) none of the 21 matricides was perpetrated with a firearm, (b) in none of the cases did the offender act with a co-offender (accomplice or accessory),
Collapse
|
5
|
Holt A, Shon PC. Exploring Fatal and Non-Fatal Violence Against Parents: Challenging the Orthodoxy of Abused Adolescent Perpetrators. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF OFFENDER THERAPY AND COMPARATIVE CRIMINOLOGY 2018; 62:915-934. [PMID: 29409402 DOI: 10.1177/0306624x16672444] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/16/2023]
Abstract
An examination of scholarly literature concerning fatal violence (i.e., parricide) and non-fatal violence toward parents reveals dominant themes of mental illness, child abuse, and pathology based on a research paradigm that focuses on adolescent perpetrators and, to a lesser extent, elderly victims. This article presents a critical analysis of this literature and argues for a more contextualized approach to the study of violence against parents. It is argued that criminologists should widen their methodological lens to examine this issue from a life course perspective and draw on conceptual tools such as developmental pathways, sources of conflict, and intersectionality to allow for an analysis that can offer new ways of thinking about violence toward parents.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Phillip C Shon
- 2 University of Ontario Institute of Technology, Oshawa, Canada
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
De Borba-Telles LE, Menelli-Goldfeld PR, Soares-Barros AJ, Schwengber HE, Peres-Day V, De Moraes-Costa G. Is parricide a stable phenomenon? An analysis of parricide offenders in a forensic hospital. REVISTA DE LA FACULTAD DE MEDICINA 2017. [DOI: 10.15446/revfacmed.v65n1.58829] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Introducción. Estudios anteriores demuestran que la enfermedad mental severa es frecuente entre los parricidas.Objetivo. Investigar las características psiquiátricas y sociodemográficas, los métodos de asesinato y los antecedentes penales de criminales acusados de parricidio remitidos a un centro de salud mental forense en Brasil.Materiales y métodos. La muestra estuvo constituida por todos los pacientes acusados de parricidio que contaban con asistencia psiquiátrica en el Instituto Psiquiátrico Forense Dr. Maurício Cardoso. Se realizó un análisis transversal de las variables sociodemográficas de los parricidas y sus víctimas, las características del crimen y el diagnóstico psiquiátrico.Resultados. La mayoría de parricidas eran jóvenes (29.2±9.4) con bajo nivel de educación (5.4±3.9); 100% eran varones adultos, 94.4% solteros y 77.8% no tenía antecedentes penales. Todos los delincuentes actuaron solos, en su mayoría en contra de personas mayores (63.3±13.2) y en casa de sus padres (83.3%). Solo uno utilizó arma de fuego; 10 eran patricidas y 6 matricidas, 1 asesinó a su padrastro y 1 cometió doble parricidio. Tras cometer el asesinato, 27.8% trató de escapar de la escena del crimen. La mayoría de los condenados sufrían esquizofrenia (61.1%) o personalidad antisocial (16.7%).Conclusiones. El patrón observado en relación con las características de uso de armas, víctima y asesino es consistente con investigaciones previas, lo que permite concluir que este fenómeno es relativamente estable y homogéneo. Se debe garantizar evaluación psiquiátrica forense a quienes hayan cometido parricidio, dada la alta prevalencia de enfermedad mental en estos individuos.
Collapse
|
7
|
Campobasso CP, Laviola D, Grattagliano I, Strada L, Dell'Erba AS. Undetected patricide: Inaccuracy of cause of death determination without an autopsy. J Forensic Leg Med 2015; 34:67-72. [PMID: 26165662 DOI: 10.1016/j.jflm.2015.05.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2015] [Revised: 05/05/2015] [Accepted: 05/20/2015] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
Patricide (killing the father) is uncommon form of homicide. Usually the assaults occur at home in the absence of witnesses and adult sons are frequently involved. Homicides in a domestic context usually do not tend to recurrence, because the motivation for the crime ends with the death of the parent. However, this is not what was observed in the present case study dealing with the death of a 70 years old white man originally misclassified as accident and discovered three years later only after an additional homicide in a family context of a 60 years old white lady. Multiple stab wounds to the neck and thorax were misinterpreted at the external male body examination as blunt trauma falling down stairs. No forensic autopsy was requested and no comparison of medical findings with the results from the death scene, such as a bloodstain analysis was performed by the police officers nor required by the judicial authority. This was quite surprising because an additional but preliminary post-mortem external examination performed by a general practitioner on the male body already raised the suspicion that the external lesions were stab wounds thus requiring a forensic autopsy. Only the exhumation of the elderly body, performed years later, confirmed the diagnostic hypothesis raised by the first physician. The present case is quite representative of a death investigation not run professionally and performed by individuals with no specific training where most of the medico-legal investigations (especially for traumatic and violent deaths) are restricted to an external body examination without subsequent autopsy. Although misinterpretation of external lesions is inevitable and significant discrepancies between external body examination and forensic autopsy are not rare, in the case of contradictory results of post-mortem external examination or unclear/suspicious cause and manner of death, investigation should proceed necessarily with a forensic autopsy.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Carlo P Campobasso
- Dept. of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Molise, via De Sanctis, 86100 Campobasso, Italy.
| | - Domenica Laviola
- Section of Legal Medicine, Dep of Interdisciplinary Medicine (DIM), University of Bari, Policlinico, Piazza Giulio Cesare, 70124 Bari, Italy
| | - Ignazio Grattagliano
- Section of Forensic Psychiatry, Dep of Interdisciplinary Medicine (DIM), University of Bari, Policlinico, Piazza Giulio Cesare, 70124 Bari, Italy
| | - Luigi Strada
- Section of Legal Medicine, Dep of Interdisciplinary Medicine (DIM), University of Bari, Policlinico, Piazza Giulio Cesare, 70124 Bari, Italy
| | - Alessandro S Dell'Erba
- Section of Legal Medicine, Dep of Interdisciplinary Medicine (DIM), University of Bari, Policlinico, Piazza Giulio Cesare, 70124 Bari, Italy
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
|
9
|
Contreras L, Cano C. Adolescents who assault their parents:a different family profile of young offenders? VIOLENCE AND VICTIMS 2014; 29:393-406. [PMID: 25069145 DOI: 10.1891/0886-6708.vv-d-12-00132] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/03/2023]
Abstract
Some authors have proposed that the mechanisms underlying adolescent-to-parent abuse seem to be different from other forms of juvenile delinquency. Given that this aggression is exerted within the family setting, our study was aimed to explore if there was a differential family profile for those adolescents who commit a parent abuse offense compared to those who commit other types of offenses. Judicial files of 1,046 young offenders from the Juvenile Justice Service of Jaén (Spain) were examined. The final sample (654 young offenders) was divided into 2 groups: those who had committed offenses against a parent (parent abuse group) and those who had committed other types of offenses (other offenses group). Results showed that families with parent abuse have differential characteristics, especially regarding the family size, type of household, parenting styles, and the patterns of interactions between the family members.
Collapse
|
10
|
Shon PCH, Williams CR. An Archival Exploration of 19th-Century American Adult Female Offender Parricides. OMEGA-JOURNAL OF DEATH AND DYING 2013; 67:247-68. [DOI: 10.2190/om.67.3.a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Social and behavioral scientists have increasingly attended to the contexts and motivational dynamics underlying parricidal events. These efforts notwithstanding, most research has focused on adolescent or adult male offender populations. One largely neglected area of study is that of adult female offender parricide. The present study utilizes archival records to examine the contexts and sources of conflict that gave rise to adult female offender parricides in the late 19th century. Three general themes emerged, representing the primary contexts behind adult female offender parricide: (1) abuse and neglect; (2) instrumental, financially-motivated killings; and (3) expressive killings, often during the course of arguments. Each of these contexts is explored.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Phillip Chong Ho Shon
- Faculty of Social Science and Humanities, University of Ontario Institute of Technology, Oshawa, Ontario, Canada.
| | | |
Collapse
|
11
|
Autism plus psychosis: A ‘one-two punch’ risk for tragic violence? Med Hypotheses 2013; 81:404-9. [DOI: 10.1016/j.mehy.2013.05.032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/23/2013] [Revised: 05/16/2013] [Accepted: 05/23/2013] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
|
12
|
Ross RG, Maximon J, Kusumi J, Lurie S. Violence in childhood-onset schizophrenia. Ment Illn 2013; 5:e2. [PMID: 25478126 PMCID: PMC4253386 DOI: 10.4081/mi.2013.e2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2011] [Revised: 09/21/2012] [Accepted: 11/06/2012] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Violence is elevated in older adolescents and adults with schizophrenia; however, little is known about younger children. This report focuses on rates of violence in younger children with schizophrenic-spectrum illnesses. A retrospective review of structured diagnostic interviews from a case series of 81 children, ages 4-15 years of age, with childhood onset of schizophrenic-spectrum illness is reported. Seventy-two percent of children had a history of violent behavior, including 25 children (31%) with a history of severe violence. Of those with a history of violence, 60% had a least one episode of violence that did not appear to be in response to an external stimulus (internally driven violence). There was no significant impact of age or gender. For many children, these internally driven violent episodes were rare and unpredictable, but severe. Similar to what is found in adolescents and adults, violence is common in children with schizophrenic-spectrum illnesses. General violence prevention strategies combined with early identification and treatment of childhood psychotic illnesses may decrease the morbidity associated with childhood psychotic violence.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Randal G. Ross
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Colorado Denver, Aurora, CO, USA
| | - Julia Maximon
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Colorado Denver, Aurora, CO, USA
| | - Jonathan Kusumi
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Colorado Denver, Aurora, CO, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Denver Health and Hospitals, Denver, CO, USA
| | - Susan Lurie
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Colorado Denver, Aurora, CO, USA
| |
Collapse
|
13
|
A population-based study of juvenile perpetrators of homicide in England and Wales. J Adolesc 2011; 34:19-28. [DOI: 10.1016/j.adolescence.2010.03.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/05/2009] [Revised: 03/10/2010] [Accepted: 03/14/2010] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
|
14
|
Jargin SV. Social Vulnerability of Alcoholics and Patients with Alcohol-Related Dementia: A View from Russia. Alcohol Alcohol 2010; 45:293-4. [DOI: 10.1093/alcalc/agq015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
|
15
|
Dogan KH, Demirci S, Deniz I, Erkol Z. Decapitation and Dismemberment of the Corpse: A Matricide Case. J Forensic Sci 2010; 55:542-5. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1556-4029.2009.01266.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
|
16
|
Palermo GB. Parricide: a crime against nature. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF OFFENDER THERAPY AND COMPARATIVE CRIMINOLOGY 2010; 54:3-5. [PMID: 20086197 DOI: 10.1177/0306624x09353021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/28/2023]
|
17
|
Abstract
Matricide, the killing of mothers by their biological children, is a very rare event, comprising less that 2% of all U.S. homicides in which the victim-offender relationship is known. This manuscript examines more than 20 years of U.S. homicides to determine the age and gender characteristics of matricide offenders. These data reveal that most mothers are killed by their adult sons. Daughters younger than 18 years are the most infrequent killers of mothers. This article examines the incidence of parricide, the involvement of sons and daughters in matricidal incidents, and synthesizes the literature in terms of offender gender. Special attention is given to female matricide offenders, given the lack of research currently available with respect to this population. Implications for practice, policy, and research are discussed.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Kathleen M Heide
- Department of Criminology, University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida 33620, USA.
| | | |
Collapse
|