Resources Library

Suicidal Behavior Among Catholics

In this study 97 out of 148 Protestant females completed suicide compared to 37 women and 18 men who were Catholic. The rate for suicides in the general population was the same as the Catholics studied.(DD)

Effects of a Suicide in a Psychiatric Hospital

The effects of a suicide on all patients & staff of a private psychiatric hospital were studied. Results indicated that the milieu of a specific ward was the primary determinant of responses, & a theoretical formulation was proposed to explain the milieu influence. Other factors discussed included dynamics involved in stress resolution, staff reactions, noninvestment […]

Suicide Among Patients in Mental Hospitals – A Study of the Psychiatrists Who Conducted Their Psychotherapy

This study looks at 79 psychiatrists in an inpatient setting & the suggested reasons for a 22% ratio having treated patients who suicided while in hospital. Precipitating reasons include patient anomie (excessive guilt engendered from an inability to change their way of living) & the inadequacy of the relational system within staff consultation to staff […]

Suicide and the Hospital Service – A Study of Hospital Records of Patients who Subsequently Committed Suicide

30 suicides in 1 town occurring over a 7 yr period were examined. Hospital notes showed 9 Ss had recently received treatment for physical illness. 10 Ss had recently had treatment for physical illness alone. Physical & mental illness were both significantly higher than in a control group matched for age & sex. The necessity […]

Suicide in the Cellblocks – Programs Attack the No.1 Killer of Jail Inmates

This article discusses the reasons for high rates of suicide in U.S. jails, as well as preventative measures. The author describes the characteristics of suicidal inmates, as well as situations in jail which promote suicide, & methods used. A prime reason for high rates is the prevalence of psychiatric problems among inmates, & the lack […]

Attempted Suicides in Adolescents By Poisoning

A study of 600 confirmed suicidal attempts by poisoning in New York City during 1960-61 reveals that the incidence of suicide attempts varies with age. Attempts at suicide by poisoning in adolescents are higher than those reported among adults. 75% of attempts by poisoning were made by females. 22% of the reported total were Puerto […]

Australasian Suicidology

A survey has been made of 38 studies of Australasian medical & hospital experiences with self destructive behavior in the last decade. The range & depth of the data recorded in the 38 studies have been analysed & reported together with comments on some other multivariate studies from overseas. The implications of these studies for […]

Suicide Attempts With Ingestants

This article discusses the sex-specific pattern of attempted suicide. Women attempt suicide much more frequently than men, & studies show that this may be due to the use of less lethal methods, like poisoning. These methods require time to work, & therefore leave time for rescue. Of 232 cases of attempted suicide at a New […]

Methods and Fashions of Suicide

In New York City, multiple methods are often used by the same person. Children and elderly use similar and violent methods. Women use methods which allow time for rescue while men use more final and violent methods. The most common areas for stabbing wounds are the throat and chest. Gunshots are usually in the head. […]

Suicide: the Psychosocial Dimension

Ilustrates the differences in motivation & significance of suicide in Sweden & Denmark. The US is an amalgam of subcultures that must be studied separately to identify psychosocial determinants of behavior. Concludes that the varying rates & motivations of suicide in different cultures & subcultures, the differences between men & women, between young & old, […]

Dynamic Aspects of Suicide

Unfavourable Reactions to LSD: A Review and Analysis of the Available Case Reports

This article analyzes reports of adverse reactions to lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) in Canada in the late 1960s. There were 142 prolonged psychochotic reactions, 63 prolonged non-psychotic reactions, 11 spontaneous reoccurences (of the LSD experience), 4 attempted & 1 completed homicide, & 19 attempted & 11 completed suicides. The backgrounds of each completed suicide victim, […]

Psychiatrists who Kill Themselves: a Study in Suicide

In this abridged version of a paper, the author cites data from the obituary column of the Journal of American Medical Association to substantiate the high rate of suicide among psychiatrists. The article stresses the incompleteness of the data. Methodology & causative hypotheses are suggested. A concluding warning cautions that required personal psychoanalysis for young […]

Psychological Continuities: From Dissociative States to Alcohol Use and Suicide in Arctic Populations

This report draws on a number of studies of Eskimo suicide, alcohol abuse, and the traditional dissociative state, to show that these three phenomena have served similar psychological functions for the Eskimo. Hypothesizes that the central dynamic in each of these behaviors involves escaping feelings of social worthlessness, and repression of endangered feelings of frustration […]

Factors Affecting Reported Rates of Self-Injury

The magnitude of variation in reported rates of self-injury suggests that factors other than actual incidence affect these rates. Factors that relate to the scope of the reporting network & to the intensity of contacts within this network are examined to determine their effect on the reporting process. Differences in study design & reporting procedures […]

Another Look at Fear of Death

This study examines fear of death among men in hospitals & jails who have engaged in suicidal behavior. The authors found that those with a high degree of fear of death viewed death in significantly more negative terms (i.e., as bad, dark & cruel), were more often preoccupied with death, & were less religious in […]

Suicidal Depression and Physical Illness

This article describes signs physicians should look for to discover depression & suicidal intent. The author discusses the strong association between suicide & active physical illness, & the increased risk of suicide when symptoms of clinical depression, such as loss of appetite, sleep disturbance, or feelings of hopelessness, are present. Other factors are previous history […]

America’s Greatest Suicide Problem. A Study of Over 500 Cases in San Diego

This article details the high rate of suicide in San Diego from 1911 to 1926. The authors discuss reasons why the rate is so high, & provide data on methods used, age, gender, marital status, immigration, the effect of chronic illness, & the occupation of the victims. They believe that suicide is the most primitive […]

The Suicidal Patient and the Physician

This article discusses suicide & the physician’s role in its prevention. Doctors should suspect suicidal intention if a patient talks of suicide, has an incurable disease or has had surgery, suffers from depression or mental illness, is a substance abuser or a homosexual. Evaluation of suicide potential should include consideration of age & sex, history […]

The Factorial Reliability of the Middlesex Hospital Questionnaire in Normal Subjects

The internal reliability of the Middlesex Hospital Questionnaire and its component subscales has been checked by means of principal components analyses of data on 256 normal subjects. The subscales (with the possible exception of hysteria) were found to contribute to the general underlying factor of psychoneurosis. In general, the principal components analysis points to the […]

Adolescent Suicide: On Taking Arms Against a Sea of Troubles

Examined are problems of adolescent suicide by considering trends in deaths from violence, suicide rates suicide at college. Statistical problems in screening for suicide tendencies are noted, & such potential public health interventions as hotlines & emergency counseling services are described. Decisions facing a physician in an individual case are explored.

The Pathology of Self-Mutilation and Destructive Acts: A Forensic Study and Review

This article describes the various components of Karl Menninger’s classification of self-destructive behavior – particularly focal suicide. Focal suicide includes self mutilation (e.g., among prisoners & patients in mental institutions, or those with familial disorders), malingering (insurance fraud, Munchausen’s syndrome), polysurgery, purposeful accidents, impotence & frigidity. The author also describes common types of self mutilation.

An Evaluation of Suicidal Intent in Suicide Attempts

Medical, psychiatric and social histories were taken from 121 admissions for attempted suicide to County Hospital Wash. A 5 point ordinal scale of suicidal intent demonstrated that the severity of intent increased with age and women tended to make less serious attempts. 1/3 of completed suicides were psychotic; attempts more frequently had personality disturbances. Among […]