Suicide by Proxy: A Psychoanalytic Hypothesis Illustrated by Three Forensic Case Reports

This paper proposes the hypothesis of Suicide by Proxy, a psychodynamic formulation suggesting that certain acts of homicide may represent displaced manifestations of suicidal intent. Drawing on three retrospectively analysed forensic psychiatric cases involving individuals with psychotic disorders and documented suicidal ideation, this study illustrates how, from a psychoanalytic perspective, unresolved Oedipal dynamics, harsh punitive superego processes and internalised aggression may contribute to homicidal behaviour. The cases are interpreted as compatible with the hypothesis that, when direct self-harm is psychologically inhibited, suicidal impulses may be redirected towards a symbolic other, such that homicide may function as a proxy for self-destruction. Although based on a small, purposively selected case series and therefore hypothesis-generating rather than confirmatory, this formulation offers a novel perspective on the relationship between suicidality and homicidal behaviour. Rather than proposing a new diagnostic entity or established causal mechanism, the study presents a psychodynamic hypothesis intended to stimulate further clinical and empirical investigation of the relationship between self-directed and other-directed aggression.