Delinquent children can sometimes push the boundaries so far that they will also kill their parents. There are many factors that influence the behavior of kids who kill their parents. A book, titled, "All Joy and no Fun: The Paradox of Modern Parenthood" by Jennifer Senior tries to look into this matter. Most stats in the book are collected by the writer and will be used here as such.

Categorizing the young killers

There are three categories for killing parents and these are as follows:

Parricide: Mainly refers to the killing of a close relative but has become synonymous with a child killing his/her parents.

Matricide: Killing one’s mother.

Patricide: Killing of one’s father.

On average, about five parents are killed every week in the United Stated by their biological children. Killing of fathers and mothers each make up for one percent of all homicides in the US in which the victim-offender relationship is known.

Between the years 1976-2007, around 113 offenders were arrested each year in connection to killing their mothers.

As per available data, the rate of female arrests in connection with matricide was higher for juveniles than adults. Nearly 23 percent of juvenile daughters were arrested for killing their mothers.

Ticked off without warning signs

It is impossible to predict beforehand the behavior of the category of kids that kill their parents. One reason for not being able to predict incidents of parricide is due to the fact that this is statistically a very unusual event. For instance, in 2010, the law enforcement agencies across the US reported to the FBI the victim-offender relationship for 12, 996 of the 14, 748 victims categorized as murdered during that year. From the total numbers, 107 mothers were killed along with 135 fathers.

The following characteristics might help researchers take a shot at the guessing game. These include:

• The youth is raised in a drug dependant environment or in a dysfunctional family
• Is witnessing constant violence at home
• Youth failing to cope with domestic and general stress
• The youth has easy access to a firearm at home
   

[Un]natural born killers

Severely abused children (SAC): These children kill their abusive parents to end abuse that might have been ongoing since many years. Offenders of this kind are usually diagnosed with Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

Dangerously antisocial children (DAC): These kids kill their parent as a means of removing obstacle from their paths and going freely after their heart’s desire (which mostly contains inheritance money). Such children show defiant behavior since childhood and suffer from Oppositional Defiant Disorder.

Severely mentally ill children (SMIC): These children simply kill their parent because they are suffering from severe mental illness.

Setting boundaries

Setting boundaries is a valuable skill in good parenting. This requires setting limits for children and disciplining them according to rules laid down by the parents. No parent should over indulge their children and should not say yes to ever demand that the little ones make. Always set down the rules in the early life of your children. Parents should also look out for signs of unhealthy behavior in their teen and be aware if their kids are being exposed to violent imagery (including films, books and video games).