Filicide: Implications of new research for practice

Filicide, the killing of a child by their parent, stepparent or equivalent guardian, is a tragic event, but one which receives little attention except when a particularly distressing death occurs. It is not generally appreciated that Australia has a relatively high incidence of filicide in comparison with other countries of similar socio-economic development. One child dies in Australia almost every fortnight at the hands of a parent, stepparent or equivalent guardian.

Although late to begin investigating filicide, Australian researchers have undertaken a considerable amount of research on filicide in recent years, identifying incidence in each state and territory, the victims and perpetrators, and the constellation of factors that surround them. Research has shown that a different constellation of factors surrounds each of the three major parental types of perpetrators, who are mothers, fathers and stepfathers. Research has also shown the contacts that have occurred between victims, victim families, perpetrators and the services that attempted to intervene and, sadly, how the interactions between them failed to prevent the child’s death.

The task now is to move this new research-based knowledge into the practice of professionals and the programs and policies of services encountering these families. In this article, recent Australian research is reviewed and integrated to produce new practice insights, including red flag alerts, for relevant professionals and services.  

Keywords: associated factors, domestic violence, familicide, filicide, red flags.