@2024 Afarand., IRAN

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ISSN: 1027-1457    Scientific Journal of Forensic Medicine 2020;26(2):85-91

Background
Violence is one of the most important social phenomena that can include physical, psychological, sexual and economic dimensions, and it occurred with the intention of harm to another person. Among the types of violence, one of the most violent crimes that can be committed against a person's physical integrity is murder [1].
Previous Studies
…[2-7]. Studies in 132 countries in South America, Central America, and the Caribbean show that homicides are higher in men than in women. On the other hand, in Asian and African countries, women are more often killed by their sexual partners [8-10]. In a study, Najafi et al. [7] considered various motives and related factors for murder in Fars province, Iran. They concluded that the highest and lowest prevalence of homicide was in the age groups of 20-29 and 69-69 years. The most common possible causes and motives for murder in cases expressed by the avengers of blood, in 473 patients (34%), was the conflict caused by an abnormal state after consuming alcohol or drugs. Globally, young people aged 15-29 with a rate of 16.6 per 100,000, and men aged 30-42 with a rate of 14.6 per 100,000 have the highest risk of being killed [8]. Eftekhari et al. [6] in a study in Tehran concluded that the average age of the victims was between 11-32 years and the highest motive for the murder was the conflict leading to the murder (31%). There was also a significant relationship between different methods and motives leading to murder and age, sex, marital and occupational status, addiction status, and nationality of the victims. In an interview with the Fars News Agency in January 2010, the Head of the Statistics and Technology Center of the Judiciary stated that intentional injuries were at the top of the country's crimes. Based on the crime statistics, it can be said that violence in Iran, especially in the city of Kerman, is at a high level. The highest homicide rate during 1996-2002 with 6.85 and 4.56 murders (per 100,000 population) belongs to Sistan and Baluchestan and Kerman provinces, respectively. Also, the average frequency of group conflicts in the years 1997 to 2002 indicates that the first rank of 6-year group conflicts with 31.4 and 22 cases belongs to Kerman and Khuzestan provinces [11, 12].
Aim(s)
The aim of this study was to describe and investigate the demographic, psychological, and motivational factors affecting the occurrence of premeditated murder in Khorasan Razavi province.
Research type
This is a descriptive cross-sectional study.
Research society, place and time
This study was carried out on the prisoners of premeditated murder from April 2016 to March 2017 in Khorasan Razavi province, who referred to the forensic medicine of this province to check their discernment and will.
Sampling method and number
The subjects were selected by the available sampling method and completely voluntary. The inclusion criteria for this study were the lack of psychotic symptoms and mental retardation, as well as having at least 18 years old, and unwillingness of the subject to participate in the study was considered as an exclusion criterion.
Used devices&materials
Data collection was conducted by the researcher-made questionnaire along with an interview. The validity and reliability of the instrument was confirmed by relevant tests and experts' opinions. The variables such as gender, age, educational level, marital status, possible causes and motives for the murder, the occurrence of murder, the place of residence, and so on were used in the questionnaire. In this questionnaire, the demographic, psychological and motivation information for murder and its methods in premeditated murder included 14, 26, and 15 items, respectively. The information were obtained from the subjects by an experienced psychologist in this field. In order to assess the validity and reliability, the face validity and Cronbach's alpha methods based on the stability within the test were used, respectively. The reliability of the questionnaire was 0.75. The Data were analyzed using SPSS 21 software using descriptive statistics (percentage and frequency) and Chi-square test after ensuring their accuracy.
Findings by Text
The highest frequency is related to the items of men, married people, people with the age range of 21-30 years, freelance jobs, middle school degree, personal residence status, residents of Mashhad and people without a criminal record, history of drug and alcohol use, and without a tattoo, as well as the middle children of the family in terms of birth order and people who were born in the city (Table 1).In terms of psychological information, 77.1% had no history of psychiatric disorders and 83.3% had no history of suicide. Irritability and aggression were reported in 58.1% and emotional and behavioral instability was reported in 50.5% of the subjects. No significant frequency was observed in other variables (Table 2).Regarding the motive for murder and its methods in the field of murders due to family disputes, the highest frequency was related to the murder of a wife without honor reasons, due to fights and revenge and by the winning objects (Table 3).There was a significant relationship between demographic variables of gender, marital status, age range, and birth rank with homicide (p<0.001); so that committing murder was observed in men compared to women, married people compared to single or divorced people, age group of 30-21 years compared to other age groups, and the middle children compared to the first and last children of the family.
Main comparison to the similar studies
Demographic data on 105 prisoners of premeditated murder showed that the highest percentage was related to people with the age range of 21-30 years, freelance jobs, middle school degree, resident of Mashhad, personal residence status, people without a criminal record, a history of drug and alcohol use, and without a tattoo, the middle children of the family in terms of birth order and people who were born in the city. The results of this study are in accordance with the results of the research of Najafi Ebrandabadi et al. [7], the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime [8], Mohammadi and Musanejad [13], Ashrafi [14], Gholami et al. [15] and Mirzabeigi et al [16]. The results of the psychological information of the subjects showed that 77.1% had no history of psychiatric disorders. 83.3% had no history of suicide. Irritability and aggression were reported in 58.1% and emotional and behavioral instability was reported in 50.5%. No significant frequency was observed in other variables. The results of this study are in accordance with the results of the research of Najafi Ebrandabadi et al. [7], Desmond & Cobrin [17], and Fathi et al. [18]. Information on the motive for murder and its methods in premeditated murder prisoners showed that the highest prevalence of murder motives was related to killings resulting from conflict and revenge in the form of fights and revenge, and family murders such as the murder of wife without and with honor. The most common methods of murder were reported by sharp winning objects, hitting to the chest of the victim, as well as the location of murder in most cases was reported in public places. Most of the victims were friends, spouses, and neighbors, relatives of spouses and brothers and passer- by, respectively. The previous decision and planning for murder was 16.2%, the decision to destroy the body was 26.7% and the most common method of destroying the corpse was burning. On the other hand, feelings of guilt and remorse after committing murder were reported in most of the subjects. The results of this study are consistent with the results of Eftekhari et al. [5] and Najafi Ebrandabadi et al. [7]. The results of the Chi-square test also showed that the male gender, married status, being the middle child of the family, and being in the age group of 21-30 are effective factors in the occurrence of murder. The results of this study are consistent with the research of Eftekhari et al. [6], Najafi Ebrandabadi et al. [7], Mohammadi & Musainejad [13] and Mirzabeigi et al. [16]. Also, regarding the birth rank and its role in the occurrence of murder, we can refer to the research of Mirzabeigi et al. [16]. Similar studies are needed to confirm the effect of this variable and its outcome.
Suggestions
It is suggested that the limitations of this research be considered in future studies as much as possible to obtain more robust results with broader generalizability.
Limitations
One of the limitations of this study is the selection of the available sample because it was not possible to choose randomly due to the specificity of the sample. Also, this study was carried out on the community of premeditated murderers referring to the forensic medicine of Khorasan Razavi, so caution should be exercised in generalizing the results to other premeditated murderers.
Conclusions
Many aggressive behaviors are rooted in mental and personality disorders or lack of life skills. By teaching life skills, emotion management skills, and pursuing people's mental health, violent behaviors such as murder can be prevented.
Acknowledgments
We are very grateful for the cooperation of all the people who accompanied and guided us in this research.
Conflict of interest
There is no conflict of interest between the authors.
Ethical Permissions
This research has been conducted by respect to the ethical issues including confidential information and personal details and the consent of the participants in this study has been obtained.
Funding Sources
No cases have been reported by the authors.

TABLES and CHARTS

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