This study compares a vigorous shaking and an inflicted impact, defined as the terminal portion of a vigorous shaking, using a finite element model of a 6-month-old child head. Whereas the calculated values in terms of shearing stress and brain pressure remain different and corroborate the previous studies based on angular and linear velocity and acceleration, the calculated relative brain and skull motions that can be considered at the origin of a subdural haematoma show similar results for the two simulated events. Finite element methods appear as an emerging tool in the study of the biomechanics of head injuries in children.