Abstract:
The purposes of this descriptive study were to examine psychiatric disorders of murder suspects in forensic psychiatric evaluation and to explore psychosocial factors associated with psychiatric disorders. The sample consisted of 15 murder suspects, 14 new patients and one old patient, ranging in age from 23 to 48 years old. The subjects were diagnosed as forensic psychiatric by Galya Rajanagarindra Institute during January to July,2003. Data were collected from an in-depth interview, which was also noted and tape recorded. Data were also obtained from observations and additional interviews of the suspects' relatives, who were asked to complete a set of semi-structure questionnaires. These questionnaires comprised developmental history, child rearing received, family relationship, social support, stress, illness history and treatment, substance abuse, criminal behaviors, family psychiatry history and substance abuse in parents. The data from in-depth interviews were processed to analyze the content and correlation that linked causal relation to explain criminal acts of the samples. The main research findings were as follows: It was found that all of the subjects had histories of psychiatric illness. However, they did not receive appropriate psychiatric treatment before criminal acts. Most subjects experienced traditional treatment such as potion, particularly traumatic superstitious treatment, which, in turn, caused them to experience worse psychiatric symptoms. It was also found that 7 were diagnosed with schizophrenia, paranoid type. Most subjects committed crimes without knowing the nature and the consequences of their acts, particularly criminal responsibility. The weapons used were knives and the victims were family members and near persons. The crimes were mainly committed in the following situations: when psychiatric symptoms becoming worse, emotional stimulation, particularly quarrels both from the families as well as persons outside families. Seven subjects had delusion of persecution related to the victims. Some motives that caused most subjects to commit murders were: anger and isolation behaviors. Eleven subjects had auditory hallucination, hearing an order to kill the victims, or being afraid that they would be killed by the victims. Four subjects had monster and Brahma visual hallucination. One subject who smoked marihuana had illusion, seeing the victim's face keep changing from one to another until he could not bear it. The last finding is concerned with psychosocial factors. It was found that most of the murder suspects were brought up with uninvolved parenting, traumatic punishment, broken home by desertion, divorce and separation and loss of family support and most subjects had family psychiatric history.