This post about public views on suicide was inspired by a conversation I’ve been having with Dear Walden about research on suicide. In 2013, a group of Australian researchers developed and validated a scale to evaluate public views on suicide, which they named the Stigma of Suicide Scale. For each item on the scale, participants would indicate whether they agreed or disagreed that the descriptor would apply to someone who died by suicide.
When the scale was tested with research participants (676 of them), the investigators found three key factors accounted for much of the expressed attitudes toward suicide: stigma, belief that isolation/depression caused suicide, and normalization/glorification of suicide.
Factors affecting negative beliefs about suicide
Female participants were less stigmatized in their attitudes toward completed suicide, and more likely to attribute the suicide to isolation/depression. This doesn’t particularly surprise me; it seems consistent with societal gender role divisions, and the pervasiveness of such attitudes as “man up.”
Participants who had psychology degrees scored lower for stigma and higher for isolation/depression and normalization/glorification than those without. Presumably, this came as a result of having greater knowledge, although perhaps people who choose that field of study are more likely to have these attitudes already.
Participants who did not speak English at home had higher levels of stigma. In this population, 42% believed that those who die by suicide are “weak”, compared to 22% of participants who spoke only English at home.
Beliefs about suicide
Stigmatized beliefs
Overall, the most common stigmatizing responses were “punishing others,” “selfish,” “hurtful,” “reckless,” and “weak”; at least 25% of participants endorsed each of these. 38.3% of participants agreed that suicide is selfish. Some of the descriptors endorsed less commonly were shameful (8.6%), pathetic (8.1%), an embarrassment (6.1%), arrogant (4.7%), immoral (4.6%), and lazy (3.3%).
This study used a sample of students and staff at the Australian university where the researchers were on faculty. My guess is that these stigmatized ideas would be even more common in the general population. The sample was selected out of convenience rather than in an attempt to gather a representative cross-section of the population.
Glorification/normalization
There are some interesting responses within the glorification/normalization factor: brave (14.3%), strong (6.2%), powerful (4.0%), fearless (3.1%), and noble (1.9%). That means 13 people agreed that suicide was noble. Huh. That may not be a lot of people, but it’s also not negligible.
Age didn’t affect levels of stigma, but older people were more likely to normalize suicide, e.g. considering it to be rational.
Lots of room for improvement
These results aren’t surprising, but they’re still disappointing. Looking at stigma, the “hurtful” and “reckless” responses don’t particularly concern me. “Punishing others,” “selfish,” and “weak” seem far more problematic. I also find it interesting that the belief that suicide is done to punish others is in itself a rather selfish way of looking at the issue.
While the responses glorifying suicide were far fewer, they’re concerning. While stigma encourages silence, glorification encourages dying. Not good.
So, still lots of work to do.
References
- Batterham, P.J., Calear, A.L., & Christensen, H. (2013). The Stigma of Suicide Scale: Psychometric properties and correlates of the stigma of suicide. Crisis, 34(1), 13-21.
- Stigma of Suicide Scale: available in both long form and short form on the Australian National University website.
The Straight Talk on Suicide page has crisis and safety planning resources, along with info on suicide-related topics from the perspective of someone who’s been there.
Well, this sums up a terrorist on a suicide mission. He/She is considered noble.
These percentages and categories are rather frightening to say the least.
Excellent post as always, Ashely!
Yes that idea of noble suicide is definitely a scary one.
I think suicide can be noble (think of monks committing suicide to protest social ills or injustice, etc.) or someone practically committing suicide to save someone else (like their child or loved one), but suicide to hurt others should never be applauded. It bothers me that it is.
Good points. There’s a line there that shouldn’t get blurred.
The danger however with thinking that suicide is noble, especially in a very politically volatile situation like it’s happening in Hong Kong now, is that it may encourage some people to attempt suicide in the name of saving the nation.
True.
Yeah, that can happen. I often say that in my opinion there isn’t a whole lot worth actually dying for, so people should really think through their options. However, in the end, it is a personal choice what we risk for what we believe in.