1. A2-Level Sociology Suicide

2. Defining Suicide Defining suicide is an issue which needs to be considered before we can investigate the reasons behind suicide. Interpretivist's would argue that we know whether someone has committed suicide or not because we use our interpretation. Although we all interpret situations differently – therefore can we define suicide specifically? What is your definition of suicide?

3. A Definition of Suicide Taylor – A Realist Taylor criticised the common definition of suicide and came up with the following three forms of suicide: Suicidal Gesture – No intention of dying Clear-Cut Suicides – Clear intention to die – known often from a suicide note Para-Suicides – Risk taking acts which gamble with life

4. Positivism and Suicide What key words can you remember in relation to positivism? How can those key words be applied to suicide? What types of research methods do Positivists use?

5. Positivism and Suicide Durkheim is one of the most useful examples to use when explaining Positivism and suicide. Durkheim decided to study suicide as he wanted to prove that our actions are influenced by wider social forces in which we have no control over.

6. Durkheim’s Definition of Suicide “all causes of death resulting directly or indirectly from a positive or a negative view of himself, which he knows will produce this result”

7. Durkheim's Methodology Comparative method – making comparisons between data to identify differences. Official Statistics – Durkheim used these to make comparisons between countries.

8. Durkheim’s Discoveries 1.Suicide rates varied between countries although overall they were fairly stable. 2.Suicide rates varied between groups. From Durkheim’s discoveries he concluded that suicide rates were not driven by individual s but by wider social forces. If suicide was driver individually then suicide rates would have been more scattered.

9. Durkheim’s Categorisation of Suicide Integration Regulation BALANCEBALANCE Type of Suicide Lack of Integration Over-Integration Lack of Regulation Over-Regulation Egoistic Altruistic Anomic Fatalistic Read the definitions for each of these types of suicide on the handout.

10. Task Complete the activity on the handout headed What type of suicide?.

11. Positivist Response to Durkheim Halbwachs (1930) Halbwachs claimed that Durkheim over emphasised the influence religion has over suicide. Halbwachs claims that living in a rural or urban area has more of an impact.

12. Positivist Response to Durkheim Gibbs and Porterfield (1960) Gibbs and Porterfield studied suicide statistics for New Zealand and found them useful as the provide an individuals occupation class at birth and death. From this they then drew conclusions.

13. Interpretivism and Suicide What key words can you remember in relation to Interpretivist's? How can those key words be applied to suicide? What types of research methods do Interpretivist's use?

14. Interpretivism and Suicide Interpretivist Sociologists study suicide in a non-scientific method. Interpretivist's reject the use of official statistics as they prefer to look at why individuals behave in the ways they do.

15. Interpretivism and Suicide J.D Douglas (1967) Douglas identifies that suicide statistics are based on the coroners decision as to whether the death was a suicide or not. Douglas saw how suicide can have different meanings decedent on the reason for the death.

16. Interpretivism and Suicide Jean Bachelor (1979) Bachelor aims to identify what motivates people to commit suicide. Escapist Suicide Aggressive Suicide Oblative Suicides Ludic Suicides Escape an unbearable situation To hurt or harm someone else Used to gain a desire – E.g. Heaven Done for the risk and excitement

17. A Phenomenological Approach Atkinson (1978) Atkinson rejects the idea of coroners classifying suicides because the facts are social constructions. Atkinson saw how there are four commonsense factors which affects a coroners decision to classify a death as a suicide or not.

18. A Phenomenological Approach Atkinson's commonsense factors are: 1.The presence of a suicide note indicates suicide 2.Type of death such as hanging indicate suicide 3.Location and circumstances 4.Evidence of illnesses. E.g. Depression