Am J Psychiatry 1975; 132:423-427
Copyright © 1975 by American Psychiatric Association
A comparative study of predictive criteria in the predisposition of homicidal adolescents
IB Sendi and PG Blomgren
The authors evaluated the criteria that are cited in the literature as
predictive of homicidal predisposition. They applied three categories of
criteria--clinical, developmental, and environmental factors--to a study
group of 10 adolescents who had committed homicide, 10 who had threatened
or attempted homicide, and 10 hospitalized controls. Their findings did not
support the presence of a well-crystallized predisposition for homicidal
behavior in this population, but they did show that the adolescents who
committed homicide were psychotic- regressive and those who threatened or
attempted homicide were organic- impulsive. The study strongly suggests the
importance of environmental factors in reinforcing homicidal behavior.
