In this dissertation I investigate the intrapsychic make-up of rage-type offenders and explore the psychodynamics of the act of murder itself The dissertation begins with a discussion on the defining features of the act of rage-type murder. I then consider the role of personality characteristics and psychopathology in individuals who have committed such offences. With the basic features of the offender and act itself outlined, the following section reviews key areas of debate regarding the psychodynamics of violence and the intrapsychic make-up of the rage-type murderer. I first explore the nature of aggression as debated in psychoanalysis and conclude that the views expressed are often unn,ecessarily polarized regarding the origins of aggression and suggest that the specifics of particular types of aggression require consideration in order to assess their intrapsychic nature. The specifics of rage and violence are discussed with this in mind. In the second chapter of this section I develop a number of intrapsychic dimensions to be used in understanding how different types of violence are constituted. Psychodynamic contributions towards understanding rage-type murder, as a specific form of violence, are then discussed. Following this review, a number of directive ~uestions are formulated regarding (1) the intrapsychic dimension of rage-type murder; (2) the pJ;esence of the borderline personality in such offender~ and its intrapsychic nature; and (3) the_ specific psychodynamics that lie behind what is argued to be a defensive act of murder. A multiple case study approach, using nine imprisoned rage-type offenders, is used to further explore the above issues. Court summary reports, the Thematic Apperception Test and the Psychoanalytic Research Interview comprised the research material, with particular emphasis placed on the interview material. The interview is approached from a psychoanalytic perspective and I develop some theoretical, technical and analytical guidelines to try to broaden Jhe use of psychoanalysis in the research domain. Findings of the research reveal a specific kind of defensive organization that is characterized by a constellation of object relations that I term the 'narcissistic exoskeleton'. I suggest that these findings best fit the description of a particular kind of borderline personality organization typified by apparent 'normality'. Other prominent aspects of the dimensions of violence observed in these cases include: (1) a poor representational capacity; (2) an interactional style characterized by uncontainable projective exchanges between victim and offender; (3) a collusive primary object relationship combined with the absence of an internalized 'third object'; (4) a 'two-faced' superego structure; (5) the internalization of traumatic experience that has become associated with a bad object system; (6) phantasies of restoring ideal good in external objects alongside conscious fantasies of annihilation. Within the context of these factors the intrapsychic events that lead to the act itself are discussed. It is found that a collapse of the 'narcissistic exoskeleton', the intrusion of the bad object system and the unbearable shame that this evokes in the offender are prominent features of what culminates in an act of explosive rage and projective identification. Some of the implications of my research are briefly discussed in the concluding chapter.

Syfte: Syftet med studien är att undersöka hur journalister rapporterar om barnmord. Dels handlar det om hur de tillämpar de pressetiska reglerna i rapporteringen samtidigt som de förhåller sig till nyhetsvärderingskriterierna. Dels handlar det om att studera om det finns en balans mellan dessa perspektiv. Tre fall där 10-åriga flickor var offer under olika år analyserades. Åren var 1992, 2000 och 2008. Metod och material: Metoderna som tillämpas för att analysera materialet är kvantitativ innehålls-analys och tematisk textanalys. Den kvantitativa innehållsanalysen tillämpas på totalt 467 analysenheter. Den tematiska textanalysen som är kvalitativ tillämpas på 18 av de totalt 467 analysenheterna. Materialet bestod av artiklar från lokaltidningarna Östersunds-Posten, Barometern och Södra Dalarnes tidning. Dagens Nyheter dagspress och Expressen kvällspress. Huvudresultatet: Resultatet från de båda analyserna, oavsett tidningstyp, visar att journalisterna i viss mån agerar oetiskt utifrån de pressetiska reglerna. Resultatet kunde tolkas som att de kommersiella faktorerna och nyhetskriterierna var viktigare för journalisterna att beakta istället för att värna om de pressetiska reglerna och därmed de anhöriga. Detta tolkas dels utifrån att tidningarna publicerade information som kunde identifiera gärningsmännen, dels att de rapporterade detaljrikt om hur flickorna hade blivit bragda om livet. / Purpose: The purpose of the study is to investigate how Swedish journalists covered murders in which children were victims. The main question of the study is whether in reporting there was a balance between following the professional ethical rules and the news values. The study follows the coverage of three cases where female children were murdered in small Swedish towns (in 1992, 2000 and 2008), and traces the dynamics of how the reporting has changed.   Method and material: The study applied quantitative content analysis and thematic text analysis to analyse the material. The material of the study was comprised of articles published in the morning newspaper Dagens Nyheter, evening newspaper Expressen and local newspapers Östersund-Posten, Barometern and Södra Dalarnes tidning. 467 units were analysed in the quantitative part, and 18 units – in the qualitative part.   The results: The analysis shows that regardless of the type of the newspaper, the journalists often do not follow the professional Code of Ethics when reporting on murders where children are victims. All the newspapers in all the three cases published information that could allow for identification of the perpetrator and provided the reader with (often unnecessary) details about the murders of the girls. The study shows that the frequency of reporting has increased from the beginning of the 1990s, however, in all the three cases, the media rather based their descriptions of the murders on the news values than on the professional ethical rules. This can potentially be explained by the newspapers’ orientation at commercial benefits rather than protection of the next of kin to the murdered.

The research is concerned with how the post-mortem report can be used as a source of information in the investigation of murder cases to identify crime, individual crimes and trace suspects, etc. The understanding of the post-mortem report, and the information which can be obtained from it, will assist the police investigators to handle murder cases in a professional way. The purpose of this research was to evaluate the existing manner in which police investigators use post-mortem reports in their investigations, with the intention of determining its strengths and weaknesses, and considering how the usage can be improved. Secondly, the researcher wanted to explore how investigators use postmortem reports as a source of information in their investigations. To accomplish this, the researcher perused international and national literature in an attempt to explore the field. The researcher wanted to apply the new research knowledge in order to develop good practice in the field. This has been done by recommending new procedures to enhance performance and to improve the conviction rate in court cases. / Police Practice / M.Tech. (Forensic Investigation)

The research is concerned with how the post-mortem report can be used as a source of information in the investigation of murder cases to identify crime, individual crimes and trace suspects, etc. The understanding of the post-mortem report, and the information which can be obtained from it, will assist the police investigators to handle murder cases in a professional way. The purpose of this research was to evaluate the existing manner in which police investigators use post-mortem reports in their investigations, with the intention of determining its strengths and weaknesses, and considering how the usage can be improved. Secondly, the researcher wanted to explore how investigators use postmortem reports as a source of information in their investigations. To accomplish this, the researcher perused international and national literature in an attempt to explore the field. The researcher wanted to apply the new research knowledge in order to develop good practice in the field. This has been done by recommending new procedures to enhance performance and to improve the conviction rate in court cases. / Police Practice / M.Tech. (Forensic Investigation)