Detection of Suicidal Patients: An Example of Some Limitations in the Prediction of Infrequent Events

The purposes of this paper are to suggest greater refinement of the classification of patients in suicide research, to emphasize some of the limitations in the prediction of suicide, and to indicate the general applicability of such limitations in the prediction of any other behaviour or event of “infrequent” occurrence. This paper describes suicide as being a very infrequent occurrence, however it was received in 1954. (21 ref)