Mental disorders and homicidal behavior in Finland.
BACKGROUND
Owing to the fact that Finnish police have been able to solve about 95% of all homicides during recent decades and because most homicide offenders are subjected to an intensive psychiatric evaluation, it was possible to examine data on 693 of 994 homicide offenders during an 8-year period.


METHODS
The prevalences of mental disorders of the homicide offenders were used to calculate odds ratios (ORs) for the statistical increase in risk associated with specific mental disorders.


RESULTS
The results indicate that schizophrenia increases the OR of homicidal violence by about 8-fold in men and 6.5-fold in women. Antisocial personality disorder increases the OR over 10-fold in men and over 50-fold in women. Affective disorders, anxiety disorders, dysthymia, and mental retardation did not elevate the OR to any significant extent (OR < 5.0).


CONCLUSIONS
Homicidal behavior in a country with a relatively low crime rate appears to have a statistical association with some specific mental disorders classified according to DSM-III-R classifications.
Eronen
M
M
Department of Forensic Psychiatry, University of Kuopio, Niuvanniemi Hospital, Finland.
Hakola
P
P
Tiihonen
J
J
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000437:Alcoholism / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology; D000987:Antisocial Personality Disorder / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology; D003415:Crime / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D003417:Criminal Psychology; D005260:Female; D005387:Finland / Q000453:epidemiology; D005555:Forensic Psychiatry; D006708:Homicide / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D008875:Middle Aged; D016017:Odds Ratio; D015995:Prevalence; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000453:epidemiology; D012565:Schizophrenic Psychology; D012737:Sex Factors; D014754:Violence