Abstract
M.A.
Family murder is a social phenomenon, which influences not only victims but
also family members, communities and societies. Social workers need to
intervene mostly when working with the victims. This implies that social workers
need to have a knowledge base of family murder. Not much is known about the
dynamics regarding family murder. The researcher is of the opinion that certain
risk factors play a role in family murder.
In this study the researcher aims at getting an in-depth view of the problem by
interviewing victims and next-of-kin who have been touched by this event. The
study is qualitative in nature and aims to describe one element namely risk
factors.
The aim of the study is to identify specific risk factors from raw data. The raw
data will be collected from people who in some way were involved in a family
murder. The data will present specific themes. These themes need to be
compared with existing literature. The themes will be used as a basis for
conclusions and recommendations.
The selection of a descriptive qualitative design is mainly to gain in-depth
knowledge regarding risk factors as relevant to a small sample of cases.