Chapter 8: Suicide

Question 1

____ ____ clearly intend to end their lives

Answer 1

Death Seekers

Question 2

_____ _____ intend to end their lives as they believe the process of death is already underway

Answer 2

Death Initiators

Question 3

_____ _____ do not believe self inflicted death will not end this existence

Answer 3

Death Ignorer

Question 4

_____ _____ have ambivalent feelings about death and show this in the act itself

Answer 4

Death Darer

Question 5

Schneidman’s definition of suicide

Answer 5

intentioned death, self inflicted death in which one makes an intentional, direct and conscious effort to end one’s life.

Question 6

Schneidman’s 4 characterizations of suicidal seekers:

Answer 6

DEATH SEEKER
DEATH INITIATOR
DEATH IGNORER
DEATH DARER

Question 7

two ways researchers study suicide

Answer 7

1. retrospective analysis
2. studying people who survive their suicide attempts;
   a kind of psychological autopsy

Question 8

Patterns and Statistics of Suicide Rates

Answer 8

women/men (3:1)

men have a higher completion rate (3:1)

Question 9

Who has the higher rate of suicide completion (men or women) and why?

Answer 9

Men have a higher completion rate.

Methods differ in lethality.
Shooting, stabbing, hanging VS drug overdose.

Guns used in nearly two-thirds of male suicides in US
compared to 40% of females suicides.

Question 10

Patterns and Stats in regard to social support and marital status?

Answer 10

• no close friends

- divorced people have higher suicide rate that married or co-habiting

Question 11

Patterns and Stats in regard to regards to race

Answer 11

(United States)
white americans 3 times more likely than hispanic, asians
the exception is NATIVE AMERICANS (1.5 times the national rate)

Question 12

What triggers suicide? (GENERAL)

Answer 12

• recent events or current conditions in persons life
• stressful events
• mood or thought changes
• alcohol or drug use
• immediate and long term stressors

Question 13

what are examples of long-term stressors?

Answer 13

serious illness
abusive environments with little or no escape
occupational stress-
policeman, psychiatrists, psychologists, physicians,
lawyers, nurses, dentists have high rates

Question 14

suicide is sometimes preceded by changes in _____

Answer 14

• mood.
• changes may not be enough to warrant a diagnosis of mental disorder
• rise in sadness–> anger, frustration, anxiety, shame