Why are some children capable of killing?

Jose RabadánHe was 16 years old and he killed his parents and his psychically handicapped sister with a katana, because he thought that that way he could make his life peaceful. Raquel and Iria, 17 and 16, killed a classmate because they wanted to find out what it felt like to kill and make themselves known.

Javier Rosado, 21, along with a friend of 17, killed a randomly selected passerby. "El Nano", 13 years old, killed a friend of 10 with a stone, because the latter had insulted him. Antonio Molina, 14, threw her 6-year-old stepsister down a water distribution pipe where she died of suffocation, because he was jealous of her. Enrique Cornejo and Antonio Aguilar, both 16, raped and stabbed an 11-year-old boy.

Killer children: data and explanation from Psychology

Although each case is unique and each author had different reasons for carrying them out, they all have common elements: the crimes were committed by minors and took place in Spain.

Of course, those mentioned are not the only cases of murders carried out by minors that have occurred in the country, there are more, although these have gone down in history due to the violence exercised and the motivations of the authors.

Why does a minor commit a crime of this magnitude?

It is chilling to think that from such a young age, minors can commit acts of such violence, as the one manifested in the cases set out above and the question we ask ourselves when faced with these events is: How can a minor experience such acts of violence?

It may interest you: "Psycho children: 5 cases of underage murderers"

Scientific evidence: from personality to emotional conflicts

Experts who study these violent phenomena allege various causes. Echeburúa reports two possible hypotheses in this regard, one of them defends extreme impulsivity caused by brain damage that affects the mechanisms that regulate behavior and, the other, refers to a vulnerability of a biological or psychological.

For his part, the professor at the University of Barcelona Antonio Andrés Pueyo alludes to personality and opportunity factors. This author argues that in certain emotional situations a series of violent acts are triggered that can end in homicide without the desire to kill having previously mediated. Other theories affirm that the predictors that explain violence in general are also explanatory for the cases in which murder or homicide occurs.

Some of these factors would be: perinatal factors, very rigid or permissive parenting and educational styles, not having developed a good attachment in early childhood, low self-control, poor academic performance, living in conflictive areas, having antisocial attitudes, having been victims of abuse or sexual abuse in childhood, alcohol and drug use and psychological problems or disorders, such as: antisocial personality disorder or psychopathy.

Background psychological disorders

In the latter, psychological problems are supported by other theoretical currents that affirm that psychological disorders are the factors that make the difference between those who kill and those who do not despite being exposed to the same risk factors (Farrington, 2012).

Other factors that have also been the object of observation are the temperament of the minors, the moral development, the self-esteem, and the absence of empathy, although it should not be forgotten, that an adequate and correct education can minimize the harmful effects that the environment and genetic predisposition may have in the minor and thus reduce the predisposition to commit acts violent

Fact: 54% of homicidal minors suffer from a personality disorder

A study carried out in Spain with children and adolescents convicted of homicide, yields very revealing data regarding this issue: 54% of those who had committed a homicide suffered from a personality disorder or antisocial behavior, 4% had committed the murder under the influence of a psychotic break and the remaining 42% were normal boys and girls who lived in apparently normalized families.

The conclusion to this phenomenon, as can be seen, is not clear and the literature that we find in this regard is varied and refers to various factors that converge and trigger an act of extreme violence, such as the homicide. Therefore, we cannot speak in isolation of the opportunity for crime, psychological, genetic or environmental factors, but rather of the confluence of them. And always keep in mind, as Heide concluded that child murderers tend to have a prior history of crime or antisocial behavior.

Bibliographic references:

• Farrington, D., Loeber, R. and Berg, M. (2012). Young men who kill: A prospective Longitudinal Examination from Childhood. SAGE publications.
• Pérez Oliva, M. (2008). Why can a child kill? The weekly country.
• Minors and murderers. List of crimes registered in the last 18 years. (2010). The world. Recovered from: http://www.elmundo.es/elmundo/2010/04/04/espana/1270373512.html
• Young murderers, the most shocking cases in Spain (2013). Teinteresa.es. Recovered from: http://www.teinteresa.es/espana/Jovenes-asesinos-casos-estremecedores-Espana_0_958105162.html