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Convicted Women Who Have Killed Children

A Self-Psychology Perspective

National Development and Research Institutes, Inc.

SANDRA LANGLEY

National Development and Research Institutes, Inc.

HENRY H. BROWNSTEIN

University of Baltimore and National Development and Research Institutes, Inc.

BARRY J. SPUNT

John Jay College of Criminal Justice

Because the innocence and vulnerability of children typically arouse feelings of nurturance and protectiveness, how do we understand homicides involving women who have killed children? As part of a NIDA-funded study that examined the role of drugs in homicides committed by women, life history interviews with 42 women convicted of killing children were conducted. Repeated experiences of damage to the self, including physical and sexual victimization, suicide attempts, and substance abuse, were evident throughout the lives of these women. The extent that these self-damage indicators interfered with the women's ability to parent children is discussed. Links between these self-damage experiences and the homicide are explored.

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