Cultural adaptation for suicide prevention (IN Suicide risk assessment and prevention, edited by M. Pompili)

Crisis counseling and intervention approaches aimed to address suicide risk in specific cultural populations are varied. As Western psychology and methods have long dominated both practice and academic literature, less research interest was focused on indigenous approaches to suicide prevention. But preventing suicide is not a one size fits all, as the crisis precipitating a suicidal event occurs within a context. Crisis counseling techniques based on Western theories and the associated suicide prevention practices according to the Western psychiatric model may not be the best fit for the crisis of suicide in all parts of the world. It is unrealistic and ineffective to use just one approach when attempting to prevent suicide among differing populations. Indigenous prevention methods rooted in the cultural context are gaining attention and provide a different lens to expand the understanding of suicidal crises. This chapter will discuss crisis counseling and suicide prevention efforts across the globe with emphasis on indigenous approaches and cultural adaptations to the standard Western model of suicide prevention.