Summary: Women who commit lethal violence rarely display psychopathy, instead acting out of provocation and perceived threats. A 15-year Swedish study of 175 cases found that about half of the women had a severe mental disorder, and these women showed slightly more short-term planning but still high emotional arousal.
Instrumental motives like power or money were uncommon, and most acted impulsively under pressure. The findings suggest opportunities for prevention by addressing violence exposure and exploring women’s own thoughts of using violence.
Key Facts:
- Female killers showed low levels of psychopathy, with reactive, not instrumental, motives.
- Women with severe mental disorders exhibited slightly more planning but still acted under high arousal.
- Most had a history of violence exposure, and many had sought help prior to their crimes.
Source: University of Gothenburg
Women who kill are not characterized by psychopathy. Instead, they act primarily because they feel provoked and threatened. At the same time, there is a certain degree of planning among the group of women with a severe mental disorder who commit lethal violence, according to a study at the University of Gothenburg.
The background to the study is the limited knowledge about women who commit lethal violence. The overall aim was to investigate the links between psychopathy, type of violence, and severe mental disorder in cases of lethal violence carried out by women.
The study is based on a mapping of all 175 cases in Sweden over a fifteen-year period (2000–2014) in which female perpetrators underwent forensic psychiatric investigations after being charged with lethal or attempted lethal violence. About half of the women were assessed to have a severe mental disorder.
According to the results, published in the International Journal of Forensic Mental Health, the group of female perpetrators is characterized by relatively low levels of psychopathy.
They usually act under high arousal due to reactive motives, for example, to protect themselves or others in a threatening situation. They were less likely to have instrumental motives, where the aim is to gain power, obtain money, or similar.
Thoughts about violent actions
The women with a severe mental disorder also acted to a large extent under high arousal, but as a general rule were provoked to a slightly lesser degree, and also had a slightly longer time of thinking about acting violently compared to those who were not assessed to have a severe mental disorder.
There were no lengthy preparations or advanced planning; rather, there were thoughts about violent actions up to 24 hours in advance.
The study’s lead researcher was Karin Trägårdh, a doctoral student at the University of Gothenburg and a psychologist specilized in clinical forensic psychology, who works at the Department of Forensic Psychiatry, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Rågården.
“Women with a severe mental disorder seem to have a slightly higher degree of short-term planning than those without a severe mental disorder, which is interesting,” she says.
“People don’t necessarily associate a person with severe mental illness with having planned what they do. We have also seen that women without a severe mental disorder have a stronger experience of provocation when carrying out the violence.”
Important to ask about violence
In her previous research, Karin Trägårdh has studied background factors for women in Sweden who are guilty of murder, manslaughter, involuntary manslaughter, or infanticide.
Regardless of whether or not they were assessed as having a severe mental disorder in connection with their crimes, the majority had a history of exposure to violence, suicide attempts, etcetera.
The current study suggests that neither psychopathy nor instrumental aggression are strong drivers for women who kill, which is consistent with previous research.
Furthermore, previous research also shows that women are more likely than men to have sought help before committing crimes, which – in combination with recent findings about a certain degree of planning – presents an opportunity for prevention.
“This is an important aspect to capture. Although women may certainly be asked questions about exposure to violence by the police, social services, and healthcare professionals, we rarely ask them whether they themselves have had thoughts about using violence as a solution to the problems they experience.
“Although it’s extremely rare for women to commit lethal violence, we mustn’t shy away from asking about or otherwise investigating this further.”
Fact box:
Psychopathy: Psychopathy constitutes a disability in more serious cases, and is characterized by personality traits and behaviors such as a lack of empathy, guilt, and remorse.
Other characteristics include manipulative and deceitful traits, eloquence, and a grandiose self-image, as well as early behavioral problems and antisocial behavior. Psychopathy is not an established diagnosis in its own right, but can be related to antisocial personality disorder.
Severe mental disorder: This is a medico-legal concept, not a medical diagnosis, and deals with the effects of mental illness or behavioral disorders. The question of whether or not a suspect has a severe mental disorder is investigated by the National Board of Forensic Medicine on behalf of the court, and can determine whether imprisonment or forensic psychiatric care is appropriate.
About this forensic neuroscience and mental health research news
Author: Margareta G. Kubista
Source: University of Gothenburg
Contact: Margareta G. Kubista – University of Gothenburg
Image: The image is credited to Neuroscience News
Original Research: Open access.
“Links Between Psychopathy, Type of Violence, and Severe Mental Disorder among Female Offenders of Lethal Violence in Sweden” by Karin Trägårdh et al. International Journal of Forensic Mental Health
Abstract
Links Between Psychopathy, Type of Violence, and Severe Mental Disorder among Female Offenders of Lethal Violence in Sweden
Knowledge about females who commit lethal violence is limited compared to what we know about their male counterparts.
The overall aim of this study was to investigate links between psychopathy, type of violence, and severe mental disorder (SMD), among Swedish female offenders of lethal violence.
All records for female offenders (N = 175) who underwent a court-ordered forensic psychiatric investigation in Sweden charged with lethal/attempted lethal violence, between 2000 and 2014, were included.
Structured assessments were done based on the Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R) concerning psychopathy, and the Violent Incident Coding Sheet (VICS) concerning instrumental/reactive aspects of the crime.
Overall, the female offenders were characterized by relatively low levels of psychopathy and acted based on reactive rather than instrumental motives.
Modest associations appeared between psychopathy and instrumental, rather than reactive, features of the crime.
However, the SMD group (n = 84) scored lower on PCL-R total and interpersonal facet 1, somewhat higher on VICS arousal and planning (<24 h vs. no planning), while showing inconsistent but generally lower scoring on provocation. PCL-R facet 1, and the secondary VICS classifications appeared as covariates associated with an SMD.
These results contribute to our understanding of the driving mechanisms and complexity behind female lethal violence, where the SMD group showed a somewhat unexpected multifaceted pattern, including reactive and instrumental VICS aspects.
This has especially consequences for the assessment and handling of female offenders of lethal violence within forensic psychiatry and correctional services, also calling for further research focusing on this population.
