Stepparents and Genetic Parents Use Different Methods to Murder Their Children

Stepparents commit filicide more often than do genetic parents. In 1994, using
Canadian and British national databases, Daly and Wilson provided evidence that there
are motivational differences that may affect the methods by which stepparents and
genetic parents kill their children, and that stepfathers were more likely than genetic
fathers to commit filicide by methods of beating and bludgeoning, revealing greater
resentment and bitterness toward their charges. Genetic fathers were more likely to kill
their children by asphyxiation or shooting, perhaps to ensure a less painful and quicker
death. In 2004, Weekes-Shackelford and Shackelford, using a United States national
database, replicated the findings of Daly and Wilson (1994) for stepfathers and genetic
fathers. I sought to replicate the findings of Daly and Wilson (1994), and WeekesShackelford
and Shackelford (2004) using a United States county-level database for
Broward County, Florida that included case-level information for 89 filicides. Prediction 1, that the percentage of filicides committed by beating or bludgeoning would be greater
for stepparents than for genetic parents, was supported. Prediction 2, that the percentage
of filicides committed by beating or bludgeoning would be greater for stepfathers than for
genetic fathers, was in the predicted direction but was not significant. Discussion
addresses step parental psychology in view of the current research, the limitations of the
current study, and future research directions for this topic.