Suicide and Loss in Social Interaction (IN: Essays in Self-Destruction, ed. by E S Shneidman)

Breed examines the relationship between loss in interpersonal relationships & self-destructive behavior, based on data from research of 250 suicidal deaths that occurred in New Orleans over a 10-year period. 3 forms of loss predominate: job, person, & mutuality. Breed claims that the combination of loss, the victim’s awareness that other people notice the loss, & the awareness that other people see this as failure, together with the victim’s unique psychic structure, drive him to self-destruct.