Skip to main content

General Violence

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Behavioral Analysis of Maternal Filicide

Part of the book series: SpringerBriefs in Psychology ((BRIEFSBC))

  • 1806 Accesses

Abstract

Violence can be defined as the “intentional act of physical aggression against another being that is likely to cause physical injury” (Meloy 2006). Historically, violence has always existed between humans, and humans have also perpetrated violence on other species. Even in early texts, such as the Bible, killing occurred among humans and there were moral dictates as well as “laws” that spoke against the killing of another human being (Exodus 20:13). In most, if not all religions, there are rules set forth that humans should not kill other humans (e.g., thou shalt not kill).

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

eBook
USD 16.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 16.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Notes

  1. 1.

    The literature utilizes different terms to depict similar concepts describing types of violence. Affective violence is also referred to as reactive violence and predatory violence is also referred to as instrumental violence. The authors have chosen to include both terms interchangeably.

  2. 2.

    Psychopathy is indicative of individuals who manifest characterological deficits exhibiting manipulative, deceptive, self-centered, callous behavior and who lack empathy, guilt, and remorse. The prevalence of psychopathy in the general population is believed to be approximately 1 % and, among the prison population 10–15 % (Hare 1991, 2003). It is often associated with antisocial personality disorder, but it is currently not a formal diagnosis in the DSM-IV-TR (DSM.org).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Joy Lynn E. Shelton .

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2015 The Author(s)

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Shelton, J.L.E., Hoffer, T.A., Muirhead, Y.E. (2015). General Violence. In: Behavioral Analysis of Maternal Filicide. SpringerBriefs in Psychology(). Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-08150-2_3

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics