Juvenile homicide in America: how can we stop the killing?

Juvenile homicide remains a serious problem in the U.S., despite recent decreases in the juvenile arrest rate for murder. Reflecting on her clinical experiences evaluating 90 adolescent murderers, the author identifies 15 factors that appear to have contributed to the escalation in juvenile homicide beginning in the mid-1980s. These factors can be grouped into five categories: situational factors (child abuse and neglect, and the absence of positive male role models), societal influences (the crisis in leadership and lack of heroes, and witnessing violence), resource availability (access to guns, involvement in alcohol and drugs, and poverty and lack of resources), personality characteristics (low self-esteem, the inability to deal with strong feelings, boredom, poor judgment, and prejudice and hatred), and their cumulative effects (little or nothing left to lose and the biological connection). Strategies to reduce juvenile violence are addressed using parents, schools, communities, government leaders, the media, and individuals.