Talking to Kids About Chris Benoit

As a pro wrestler, Chris Benoit achieved hero status among young audiences with such moves as the "Crippler Crossface" and the "Sharpshooter."

But child psychology experts worry that the real-life violence that marked the end of his life -- in which he apparently slayed his family and killed himself in his Fayetteville, Ga., home -- may have a profound effect on his youngest fans.

"I think that this is going to be very disturbing for kids," says Nadine Kaslow, chief psychologist at Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta and a professor at Emory University's School of Medicine.

As with the loss of any hero, young fans may react with depression and disappointment.

"They've lost a hero in multiple ways," Kaslow says. "In one sense, you have the death of someone who was admired; that's a loss. But then you also have the loss of respect -- we hope -- for someone, because murder-suicide is such a severe form of domestic abuse." More?