Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is a disorder that involves a pervasive pattern of instability in one’s interpersonal relationships, self-image, and impulsivity that may begin from early adulthood. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5 th Edition (DSM) observes that the personality disorder is characterized by self-harm, recurrent suicidal behaviors, and self-mutilation. The disorder can also be associated with externalized aggressive behavior that can lead to homicide. The specific criteria that were associated to have a direct effect on homicide were criteria 2 involving unstable and intense interpersonal relations, criteria 3 involving impulsivity in areas that could be potentially self-damaging, and criteria 4 that involves intense anger and difficult to control anger (“Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (DSM-5)”, 2013). These traits could lead to homicide which involves the act of killing another either intentionally, accidentally, or through reckless and negligent acts. The prevalence rates for BPD was estimated to be 1.6% but could be as high as 5.9%. The homicide rates for the United States was identified to be 5.0 per 100,000 of the population. The analysis of borderline personality disorder traits and homicide is thus important to reduce the homicide rates. A detailed analysis could be used to increase the safety of the patients and the safety of the entire population. Borderline personality disorder can lead to homicide through the three traits of unstable and intense interpersonal relationships, impulsivity, and intense anger.
Unstable and Intense Interpersonal Relationships
Unstable and intense interpersonal relationships is a diagnostic trait in borderline personality disorder. Such unstable interpersonal relationships have been found to result in homicide through intimate partner violence that can lead to the death of a loved. The two main types of homicide include familicide and filicide. Familicide involves the homicide of the intimidate partner and at least one child while filicide involves a homicide of one’s son or daughter. Individuals that have BPD experience intense interpersonal relationships and are more likely to be involved in case of family violence. These individuals can turn up against their family members where a parent can murder their entire family. Mentally healthy people cannot make sense of killing someone that they love and one has to only do this as a result of distorted thinking and depression. Borderline personality disorder is associated with a poor self-image of oneself and the individual that commits homicide would look at his wife and their children as their possessions believing that they have the right to life over those individuals. These individuals could consider that no one is able to take care of their family apart from them and in instances where they face financial challenges to take care of their families would see that the only way to take care of their family is through taking their lives.
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The relationship between borderline personality disorder and intense interrelationships that lead to homicide through familicide and filicide has been extensively studied. Redondo et al. (2019) investigated the measures of borderline personality organization and how it led to partner-violence among a sample of the male population. The study involved an investigation of 643 men that were going through a psychological treatment after being convicted of intimate partner violence. The results showed that the participants had scored highly in borderline personality disorder were more likely to be involved in partner violence that had severe consequences such as death. BPD thus increased the risk of an individual committing violent acts as a result of having a poor image of themselves and that of their partners.
Filicide suicide is a type of homicide where one partner engages in the homicide of one’s daughter or son. Fathers have been especially found the biggest culprits in a large proportion of filicide. Declercq et al. (2017) documented different cases of paternal filicide. The study established the individuals were found to have a comorbidity of various disorders that included antisocial personality disorders, borderline personality disorder, and schizoid personality disorder. The interaction of these disorders meant that the partner could undertake the act of filicide either as a result of spousal revenge from an intense relationship or from altruism. The different individuals were diagnosed with several personality disorders and borderline personality disorder was one of the recurrent disorders. The study also showed that the individuals that perpetrated the acts had experienced several difficulties with drug and alcohol abuse and addiction. The main findings of the research thus showed that there was a strong relationship between borderline personality disorder that leads to intense family relationships and paternal filicide-suicide.
Individuals that commit domestic homicide can also be examined to identify the specific personality disorders that were apparent. Hanlon et al. (2016) studied the neuropsychological profiles of murderers that were involved in the killing of intimate partners and family members. From the study, 39.6% of the participants carried out a diagnosis of personality disorder. The study showed that borderline personality disorder was the second most recurrent type of disorder that was present in 3.9% of the participants while antisocial personality disorder was the most common and it amounted to 29.4% of the sample population. The offenders of the crime were also found to be involved in aggression when interacting with close family members. This indicated the individuals that had borderline personality disorder were highly likely to showcase intense personal relationships through aggression leading to cases of domestic homicide.
The intense personal relationships are also associated with dissatisfaction and several issues in marriage that ultimately lead to homicide. Heron (2017) identified that borderline personality disorder was highly prevalent among perpetrators of domestic homicide. When analyzed closely, the researchers established that the individuals had a dissatisfaction with their lives and their marriage. They experienced high levels of anger, depression, and the idea of suicide and being under the influence of alcohol when they perpetrated their criminal activities. This showed that the trait of intense partner relationships was influenced by high levels of anger and the use of alcohol resulting in a distortion of one’s actions and their actual consequences.
Intense partner relationships in borderline personality disorder can thus be summarized to cause domestic homicide, familicide, and filicide. The individuals experience intense relationships leading to the occurrence of violence and the killing of one’s family members. This was also found to have been caused by several issues in one’s marriage and jealousy. The relationship of borderline personality disorder and domestic homicide was confirmed through different research of individuals that had been involved in partner violence and homicide. The statistics showed that the individuals showed several personality disorders and borderline personality disorder was one of the recurrent disorders.
Impulsivity
Impulsivity can be defined as an unconscious willingness to act with either an incorrect or an incomplete information. Impulsivity could involve an individual reacting to provocations. Individuals with borderline personality disorder were found to be impulsive in areas that could be potentially self-damaging. This means that their impulsivity could involve several activities such as substance abuse, reckless driving, sex, spending, and binge eating. Impulsivity could thus lead to homicide when individuals act in a way that endangers the lives of others. By being impulsive, the individual will engage in reactions to stimuli without adequately processing the information presented to them and without having a proper regard for the long-term consequences of their actions. For the individual that acts with impulsiveness, the results such as homicide can be unintentional and disastrous and leaves one with the feeling of guilt or regret. Apart from simply reacting after a provocation, the impulses could build up over time and have an urgent expression in a later date. This could be apparent among serial killers that plan their homicides meticulously and later report that they could not resist the impulsive urges.
The trait of impulsivity among individuals with borderline personality disorder has been found in individuals that engage in sexual homicide. Healey and Beauregard (2017) analyzed the presence of impulsivity as one of the traits of sexual offenders. The study revealed that sexual offenders presented an impulse control disorder and failed to control their impulses adequately. The study further analyzed sex murders and non-homicidal sex offenders and established those individuals that higher levels of impulsivity were more likely to kill. The individuals also showed other traits of low self-esteem which is a trait that is present in borderline personality disorder. Individuals that thus had borderline personality disorder showed the trait of impulsivity and this increased the chances of them engaging in homicide when they were sex offenders.
The neuropsychological and criminological features of female homicide offenders also show the presence of impulsivity as one of the key traits among the offenders. Fox et al. (2019) studied female offenders and found that most of them engaged in impulsive homicides. They were also found to have an impairment in verbal abilities. A large percentage of the partners had engaged in an impulsive act during an assault so as to end a repeated physical or sexual abuse. The study showed that impulsiveness that was associated with premeditation could result in homicide. The analysis of the neurological structure also showed that neurochemical pathways and brain structures as a result of impulsive actions led to the production of dopamine. This could cause individuals to develop addiction to impulsive behavior. Premeditated impulsiveness was one of the traits of borderline personality disorder and it thus showed that there was a positive correlation to homicide.
The strong relationship between impulsivity and homicide means that it can be referred to as a risk factor for homicide. Koval and Baumann (2019) identified that impulsivity is high risk factor for homicidal behaviors. Impulsive individuals that have access to firearms were found by the authors to be highly risky as their impulsive behaviors could have severe consequences. Impulsivity was also found to be associated with other illnesses such as depression and aggressive behavior at the individual level leading to homicide. However, Koval and Baumann (2019) identified that impulsivity alone could be used as a significant risk factor for one to develop homicidal tendencies.
The trait of impulsivity in borderline personality disorder can thus be summarized by showing that it has a direct impact on homicidal characteristics. Impulsive behavior could be identified as that it could occur as a result of provocation. Such behavior that could be self-damaging such as reckless driving but puts the lives of others at risk could lead to homicide. Sexual offenders that showed impulsive actions were more likely to engage in homicides as compared to sexual offenders that were not impulsive. Homicides from female offenders was found to be caused as a result of the individuals showing impulsive behavior as a result of premeditated actions. The given studies showed that there was a strong correlation between impulsivity and homicidal tendencies. Borderline personality disorder lists impulsivity as one of the main diagnostic criteria and can thus be directly associated to be one of the factors that causes homicides.
Inappropriate, Intense Anger and Difficult Controlling Anger
Intense and inappropriate anger and the difficulty to control anger could lead to frequent displays of temper, constant showcasing of anger, and recurrent physical fights that lead to homicides. Intense anger has strong correlation to the presence of aggression. While anger can be defined as a type of feeling, aggression is the behavior that comes about as a result of the display and the presence of anger. Anger is thus one of the reasons why someone could act in an aggressive manner. The criminal behavior that is associated with aggression could thus vary from property damage to murder and serial killing. Intense anger in borderline personality disorder is thus the emotion that motivates and energizes individuals to act in a way that puts the lives of others at risk leading to homicide.
Intense anger in borderline personality disorder leads to aggressive behavior and this leads to homicide. Wormith et al. (2020) analyzed how violent behavior turns from aggression to becoming homicide. The authors identified that anger first leads to the development of aggression. However, such aggression is usually not sufficient by itself to cause homicide. Aggression that is caused by anger was found to occur when the intensity of anger overrides the basic regulatory mechanisms of the brain. Such regulatory mechanisms can be attenuated by different factors such as substance abuse. Wormith et al. (2020) thus specifically observed that anger is one of the factors that are associated with the aggressive response of an individual. However, such aggression could be controlled by several factors such as consideration of the consequences, empathy, retaliation and punishment, and prosocial values. The expression of anger thus makes one to be ready to respond with aggression but that disposition could be suppressed or redirected. However, when such anger occurs without the proper control, it is usually associated with severe forms of violence (Wormith et al., 2020). The intense anger that is present in borderline personality disorder would thus lead to homicide when it is met with aggression that does not have appropriate controls.
Intense anger when associated with elevated impulsivity and aggressiveness can also lead to homicidal tendencies. Greenberg (2018) examined some of the symptoms of borderline personality disorder such as impulsivity and extreme temper tantrums. The individuals that often portrayed the disease were found to have several other traits such as sensory hypersensitivity, increased irritability, and an intense emotional lability. The parents of the participants observed that during periods of intense anger, the individuals could appear menacing and threat to kill a friend or sibling or they may want to die themselves. The study showed the impact that intense anger and how it relates to homicidal characteristics. When intense anger was associated with several other characteristics such as impulsivity, aggressiveness, sensory hypersensitivity, and aggressiveness, then the individual becomes extremely unstable and can engage in homicide. The study thus showed that most of the traits of borderline personality disorder such as intense anger and impulsivity work together to create homicidal tendencies for the individual.
The presence of intense anger and aggression among juveniles was also found to increase the chances of an individual to engage in future homicide. Baglivio and Wolff (2017) investigated juvenile offenders that had been involved in homicide or attempted homicide. The study revealed that individuals that had portrayed several characteristics of self-mutilation and anger or aggression increased the odds of a future homicide or an attempted homicide. The study specifically revealed that those that engaged in self-mutilation were 2.1 times at odds of engaging in future homicide and those that had self-mutilating behavior had 18.5 times odds of engaging in future homicide. One of the reasons for this was that individuals that came from environments that had chaotic families would react to intense pressures so as to escape their environment or family situations through having homicidal or suicidal actions. Individuals that had borderline personality disorder showed both traits of intense anger and self-mutilating characteristics. Having these two characteristics thus increased their chances of being involved in homicide or attempted homicide in the future.
One of the traits of anger identified in borderline personality disorder was that the individual the inability to control their anger. BPD associated with difficulties to control one’s impulses can thus lead to homicidal tendencies. González et al. studied 14,753 men and women that had engaged in self-reported violent behaviors. The individuals were analyzed for borderline personality disorder and it was established that BPD was strongly associated with men and women engaging in intimate partner violence. The study also revealed that individuals that experience anger and impulsivity were associated with the most violent outcomes such as injury, repetition of offenses and even homicides. The study thus revealed that the specific traits of borderline personality disorder such as impulsivity and anger impacted individuals in terms of the severity of their violence.
Comorbid antisocial personality disorder and borderline personality disorder specifically with the trait of anger was also found to result in homicide. The comorbid traits of the two disorders were investigated by Falcus & Johnson (2018) where six adult male personality-disordered individuals that had been involved in severe crimes were interviewed. The results from the study of the individuals showed that showed BPD trait of ‘having unwanted emotions that cannot be tolerated’ and the victim being ‘hostile by rejecting the world and feeling unacceptable to others’ were found to lead to extreme violence. The study revealed that when the intense and uncontrollable anger in BPD interacts with other traits in other illnesses can have severe consequences for the individual.
The presence of intense, uncontrollable, and inappropriate anger in borderline personality disorder can be summarized by showing that it leads aggression, violence, and homicide. It was identified that intense anger and aggression lead to severe violent behavior such as homicide when the individual cannot control their behavior. In instances when one fails to adequately consider the consequences of their actions, then one can channel their anger and aggression to violence. Juveniles that had borderline personality disorder experienced a higher chance of engaging in homicide behaviors in the future. The inability to control one’s anger meant that the intense anger and impulsiveness and the inability to control one’s emotions had strong correlations to result in violent outcomes such as homicides, repetition of offenses, and homicides. Comorbid antisocial personality disorder and borderline personality disorder was also found to increase the chances of offenders using violence.
Conclusion
Borderline personality disorder can lead to homicide through the three traits of unstable and intense interpersonal relationships, impulsivity, and intense anger. Unstable and intense interpersonal relationships is a diagnostic trait causes challenges when interacting with family members. The individual could experience intense and irrational feelings towards family members and this leads to domestic homicide, familicide, and filicide. Impulsivity is a trait where one acts as a result of provocation. While impulsivity in BPD was associated with self-harm behavior, it could also lead to the endangering of the lives of other individuals especially after one has been angered. Intense anger was found to lead to aggression which when not controlled would result in the individual engage in severe violence such as homicide. The different traits and their associated with homicide showed that borderline personality disorder should be treated by focusing on those traits so as to reduce the possibility of homicide as a result of the disorder.
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