CrimeDeadly thoughts of offenders may hold answer to reducing crime

It’s a figure of speech many of us have likely said during an argument or frustrating situation without really meaning. For a small percentage of the population though, the phrase, “I could kill you,” is not so meaningless, according to new Iowa State University research.   

Matt DeLisi, an ISU professor of sociology and criminal justice, says identifying criminal offenders with homicidal ideation – thoughts of committing deadly violence, regardless of action – could change how we sentence and treat some of the most serious offenders. ISU says that in a paper, to be published in an upcoming issue of the American Journal of Criminal Justice, DeLisi and his colleagues with U.S. Probation found that offenders who exhibit homicidal ideation were more likely to commit a variety of serious crimes.

Surprisingly, prior research shows many people have homicidal thoughts or fantasies (as many as 79 percent of men and 66 percent of women in a 1993 survey of university students), DeLisi said. It becomes a problem when those thoughts progress to contemplating situations in which homicide is appropriate, forecasting consequences of murder or simulating the act of killing.

“For most people, the thoughts are short-lived and related to a dispute. They may think about killing someone instantaneously, but once they cool down they’re OK,” DeLisi said. “For correctional clients, it’s part of their emotional life. They have a lot of anger, hostility and psychopathology. They think people are out to get them and they’re very aggressive, so some of these severe offenders contemplate homicide.”

DeLisi says only 12 percent of offenders included in the study had evidence of homicidal ideation. While it is a relatively small percentage, DeLisi says it’s a strong indication of criminal behavior. This group was responsible for a majority of most severe crimes, such as murder, kidnapping, assault and armed robbery. The study found these offenders committed their first crime at age 14 on average, amassed nearly three dozen arrest charges and nearly 20 convictions, were imprisoned nearly five times and repeatedly violated probation and parole. These totals were significantly worse than offenders who did not experience homicidal ideation.  

Thoughts may start in childhood
This is one of the first criminological studies to look specifically at the relationship between homicidal ideation and criminal behavior. Most of the existing research focuses on homicidal thoughts that stem from taking certain medications. DeLisi says their results reflect what he experienced