A psychiatrist attached to the Central Mental Hospital in Dundrum endorsed views expressed by the British Medical Journal which argue that tackling social isolation and increasing child protection may be more effective than gun control in reducing violence and gun crime among young people.
In an editorial in today's British Medical Journal, forensic psychiatrists at Broadmoor hospital in Berkshire say that young people aged 16 to 29 are the most likely victims of homicide. Referring to a 2006 Home Office studies of 80 young men convicted of firearms violence, the authors say the report shows socially isolated young men looking for an identity. "Such disconnected young men may be highly fearful, or highly fearless - both states of mind that are a defence against negative effects like shame, humiliation and distress.
"Such effects make violence more likely especially if the young person lacks the capacity to mentalise [the process of thinking about our feelings and examining what we feel about our thoughts] and regulate these feelings," the experts say.
Dr Damian Mohan, consultant forensic psychiatrist with the National Forensic Psychiatry service, Central Mental Hospital, Dundrum, told The Irish Times, he agreed with his British colleagues. Pointing out that most young offenders' first contact with the criminal justice system was when they were detained in St Patrick's Institution, he said the facilities at St Patrick's fell short of those required to improve the welfare of people at risk of acting violently.
There was no service or intervention routinely available to assist those families identified as being at risk.