Awareness and Attitudes of a Rural Ethiopian Community Toward Suicidal Behaviour: a key Informant Study in Butajira, Ethiopia

100 key informants were interviewed regarding their awareness & attitudes toward suicidal behaviour. 88 informants were male, 58 were Muslim & 42 were Christian. Informants on average, claimed to know more persons who had completed suicide than those who had attempted suicide. Almost all informants mentioned more than one cause for suicide. Of these, frustration was the most frequently mentioned cause. Most informants believed that suicide attempters are cruel, feared & not trustworthy. Their attitude toward suicide completers was expressed as condemned sinners, do not deserve funeral ceremony, & should be buried separately from others. The attitudes were punitive & disapproving. (18 refs)