Understanding Suicide: A Sociological Autopsy

Suicide has an important place in the history of sociology, because of Durkheim's famous study and the debates that have followed since it was published more than a century ago. The sociological study of suicide remains a powerful illustration of competing paradigms. The bold aim of this book is to make a new contribution to this classic sociological debate. The authors highlight the importance of qualitatively-driven, mixed methods sociological research on individual suicides, coining the term 'sociological autopsy' to describe their ESRC-funded study of 100 suicide case files. They illustrate how qualitative and quantitative data can be combined; and navigate the dual paradigms of objectivism and constructionism, examining what can be known about suicidal lives and also taking a critical stance on the knowledge itself. Substantive themes developed in the book include the gendered character of suicidal behaviour, the role of the life-course and the importance of social bonds, especially intimate relationships.

Table of Contents:
List of Tables and Figures Acknowledgements Introduction The Sociology of Suicide -- A Critical Appreciation What is a Sociological Autopsy? Suicide Case Files as Sites of Identity Creation Suicide Notes as Social Documents Repertoires of Action When Things Fall Apart -- Suicide and the Life-Course Lessons for Prevention Bibliography Index

About the Author :
BEN FINCHAM is Lecturer in Sociology at the University of Sussex, UK, and part of the Gender and Inequality Research Group at Sussex. He has researched and written about suicide, mental health and work. SUSANNE LANGER is Senior Research Fellow at the Department of Mental Health and Well-Being, University of Liverpool, UK. Trained as a Social Anthropologist, her interests are health and illness, personhood, technologies and qualitative research. JONATHAN SCOURFIELD is Reader in Social Work at Cardiff University School of Social Sciences, UK. His main research interests are in gender, child welfare and children's identities as well as distress and suicidal behaviour. MICHAEL SHINER is Senior Lecturer in the Social Policy Department and Assistant Director of the Mannheim Centre for Criminology at the London School of Economics, UK. His main areas of interest are young people, drugs and alcohol, and suicidal behaviour.

Review :
'This work is a major contribution to the study of suicide, still one of the core topics in sociology. Introducing a novel methodology and an innovative approach to suicidal motivation, it will become a landmark study in the field'. - Professor Anthony Giddens, former Director of the LSE, UK and Fellow of King's College, Cambridge, UK 'Through a clever analysis of 100 suicide case files, the authors uncover a variety of neglected social and economic strains which contribute to suicide, such as indebtedness and stressful relationships at work. Their convincing analysis signals a need for researchers and clinicians to look for clusters of both sociological and psychiatric morbidity in order to obtain a better understanding of the complexities of suicide events. This combination of a 'psychological autopsy' with a 'sociological autopsy' will provide the knowledge base necessary for more effective programs for suicide prevention.' - Steven Stack, Adjunct Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Neuroscience, Wayne State University, USA