mental illness and suicide

• What four patterns did Durkheim note from studying suicide?

  • Suicide rates for each society were more or less constant over time
  • When rates did change, they coincided with key events
  • Different societies had different rates
  • Rates varied greatly within different groups in society (eg single more than married)
• What did Durkheim assert?

  Suicide rates cannot simply be the result of motives of individuals
• What two key factors in suicide did Durkheim identify?

  • a persons level of integration
  • their level of regulation
• Egoistic suicide?


  Committed by people who feel they don't belong in society
• Fatalistic suicide?


  Committed by people who are controlled by others
• Altruistic suicide?


  Committed by people who want to please their community and who really stick to their cultural norms and values
• Anomic suicide?


  Committed by people who are no longer sure of their role and purpose
• How did Douglas criticise Durkheim?

  Criticised Durkheim's positivist study of suicide

  Questioned the validity of official statistics
• Why did Douglas criticise official statistics?

  • The decision to decide death a suicide is made by the coroner
  • This depends on available evidence and is influenced by other people, chiefly the family of the deceased
• Commonsense theory of suicide?

  • Atkinson
  • if information about the deceased person fits a coroners theory, they are likely to record a suicide verdict
• How does Atkinson approach suicide?

  Doesn't accept that a 'real' rate of suicide exists objectively

  The suicide rate is not an exact record of how many have been
• What four types of evidence does Atkinson suggest are used to try and reach a verdict?

  • suicide notes
  • mode of death
  • location/circumstances of death
  • biography of the deceased eg a history of mental illness