The Social Construction of Police and Correctional Officer Suicide (In: Suicide and Law Enforcement, edited by D C Sheehan & J I Warren)

This chapter compares the dimensions, etiology, & social construction of police & correctional officer suicide. In the process, it explains the public attention & inattention paid to both & the reality & mythology of suicide rates. These analyses, based on the author’s sociological work in police & correctional departments in the United States & Europe, are used to make recommendations for addressing suicide in prevention, employee assistance, & training programs. Other issues are raised: the ancillary gains made from suicide prevention programs, the relative neglect of correctional officers, & the almost total neglect of suicide survivors. JA