Suicide in low- and middle-income countries

Boahen-Boaten, B. B., White, R. G. and O’Connor, R. C. (2017) Suicide in low- and middle-income countries. In: White, R. G., Jain, S., Orr, D. M.R. and Read, U. (eds.) The Palgrave Handbook of Sociocultural Perspectives on Global Mental Health. Palgrave Macmillan: London, pp. 351-382. ISBN 9781137395092 (doi: 10.1057/978-1-137-39510-8_17)

Abstract

With the publication of the Preventing Suicide: A global imperative (WHO 2014) report, suicide has been highlighted as an issue of urgent concern. This is particularly the case for low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), where majority of the world’s population live. This chapter synthesises research findings from case-control psychological autopsy studies conducted in recent years in LMICs to understand risk factors associated with suicide. Suicide is presented as a consequence of a complex web of diverse interacting factors ranging from intrapersonal through interpersonal to distal factors. Mental ill-health, interpersonal stress and structural constraints such as economic challenges are among the factors evidenced to confer suicide risk in LMICs. To enrich understanding about the contexts in which suicide occurs, the chapter incorporates ethnographic evidence relating to suicide in China and India, the two most populous countries in the LMICs’ category who face correspondingly large suicide burdens. Major findings are that suicide may commonly be an indication of strained family ties in China and an expression of disillusionment from frustrations of modern consumerist living in India. This highlights the importance of understanding suicide in the sociocultural context in which people live their lives and in particular the impact that social disadvantage might have on the risk of suicide. The practical difficulties in conducting suicide research and consequent methodological complexities are highlighted. The dearth of available evidence relating to suicide in low-income countries is noted as a major concern for understanding suicide in the majority world. The implications of the findings for practical suicide intervention and prevention measures as well as recommendations for future research are discussed.

• Item Type: Book Sections
• Status: Published
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: White, Dr Ross
• Authors: Boahen-Boaten, B. B., White, R. G., and O’Connor, R. C.
• College/School: College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Health & Wellbeing > Mental Health and Wellbeing
• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan
• ISBN: 9781137395092