Department of Adolescent Psychiatry, Helsinki University Central Hospital, PO Box 590, 00029 HUS Helsinki, Finland.
BMC Psychiatry. 2012 Jul 28;12:91. doi: 10.1186/1471-244X-12-91.
Two school shootings with altogether 18 victims took place in Finland in November 2007 and September 2008. Homicides and suicides are both associated with the copycat phenomenon. The aim of the present study was to characterize adolescent copycats who had threatened to carry out a school massacre.
The nation-wide study evaluated 77 13- to 18-year-old adolescents who were sent for adolescent psychiatric evaluations between 8.11.2007 and 30.6.2009, one of the reasons for evaluation being a threat of massacre at school. The medical files of the copycats were retrospectively analysed using a special data collection form. Data on demographics, family- and school-related issues, previous psychiatric treatment and previous delinquency, current symptoms, family adversities and psychiatric diagnoses were collected. The severity of the threat expressed and the risk posed by the adolescent in question were evaluated. The Psychopathy Checklist Youth Version was used to assess psychopathic traits.
All of the copycats were native Finns with a mean age of 15.0 years. Almost two thirds of them had a history of previous mental health treatment before the index threat. Almost two thirds of the copycats suffered from anxiety and depressive symptoms, and almost half of the sample expressed either suicidal ideation or suicidal plans. Behavioural problems including impulse control problems, aggressive outbursts, the destruction of property as well as non-physical and physical violence against other persons were common. The diagnosis groups highlighted were behavioural and emotional disorders, mood disorders as well as schizophrenia-related disorders. The prevalence of pervasive developmental disorders was high. Only one of the copycats was assessed as expressing high traits of psychopathy.
The copycats with school massacre threats were characterized with a high prevalence of mental and behavioural disorders. Like actual school shooters, they showed psychotic symptoms and traumatic experiences, but unlike the shooters, the copycats were not psychopathic.
2007 年 11 月和 2008 年 9 月，芬兰发生了两起校园枪击事件，共造成 18 人死亡。凶杀和自杀都与模仿现象有关。本研究的目的是描述曾威胁要进行校园大屠杀的青少年模仿者。
这项全国性研究评估了 77 名 13 至 18 岁的青少年，他们在 2007 年 11 月 8 日至 2009 年 6 月 30 日期间因在学校威胁大屠杀而接受青少年精神病学评估。使用特殊的数据收集表对模仿者的病历进行回顾性分析。收集了人口统计学、家庭和学校相关问题、以前的精神病治疗和以前的犯罪行为、当前症状、家庭逆境和精神病诊断等数据。评估了所表达的威胁的严重程度和有关青少年所构成的风险。使用青少年精神病检查表评估了精神病特征。
所有的模仿者都是芬兰本地人，平均年龄为 15.0 岁。在做出威胁之前，几乎三分之二的人有过以前的心理健康治疗史。几乎三分之二的模仿者患有焦虑和抑郁症状，近一半的样本表达了自杀意念或自杀计划。行为问题包括冲动控制问题、攻击性发作、破坏财产以及对他人的非身体和身体暴力行为很常见。突出的诊断群体是行为和情绪障碍、情绪障碍以及与精神分裂症相关的障碍。广泛性发育障碍的患病率很高。只有一名模仿者被评估为表现出较高的精神病特征。
有校园大屠杀威胁的模仿者具有较高的精神和行为障碍患病率。像实际的校园枪手一样，他们表现出精神病症状和创伤经历，但与枪手不同的是，模仿者没有精神病特征。
