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Psychiatric aspects of homicide
Author(s) -
Pétursson H.,
Gudjónsson G. H.
Publication year - 1981
Publication title -
acta psychiatrica scandinavica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.849
H-Index - 146
eISSN - 1600-0447
pISSN - 0001-690X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1600-0447.1981.tb00795.x
Subject(s) - homicide , neuroticism , psychiatry , psychology , suicide prevention , poison control , injury prevention , mentally ill , medicine , human factors and ergonomics , occupational safety and health , mental illness , personality , medical emergency , mental health , social psychology , pathology
Homicide is frequently associated with mental illness and suicide. The present study is an investigation of all known homicide incidents in Iceland during the past 80 years (1900–1979). There were 45 homicide incidents, involving 52 victims and 47 offenders. One‐third of the perpetrators were either psychotic, mentally subnormal, or committed suicide. A further one‐third were diagnosed as personality disordered, alcoholic, drug dependent or neurotic. A substantial proportion of the offenders suffered from fairly marked physical disabilities, and the mentally ill were significantly more frequently afflicted by such defects. Over 60 % of the offenders and 50 % of the victims were under the influence of alcohol at the material time. The findings are generally consistent with those of previous psychiatric studies of homicide.