Using material from Item A and elsewhere, assess different sociological explanations of suicide. (21 marks)
Suicide is the intentional taking of one's own life and sociologists over the years have tried to put forward various explanations for why someone may do this. Within sociology there are many different views on suicide on the causes and explanations for it, these come from two main methodologies which are Positivists who believe that sociology is a science and they should aim to make causal laws on suicide rates, compared to Interpretivists who believe that they should look for meaning behind occurrences and certain individuals experiences before the suicide. Other perspectives also put in their views on what they believe to explain
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Obviously this was highly criticised by Structural Functionalists such as Durkheim who believed that Douglas’ work was too unscientific and that he incorrectly assumed that the nature of man is active rather than passive.
Another sociologist who takes an Interpretivist methodology is Atkinson, believing that social meaning and context is more important in finding root causes. However unlike Douglas, Atkinson is a Ethnomethodologist which has a central belief of showing that each individual use their own members methods to work out what they see. This is why Atkinson decided to study suicide, also to show how official statistics are not enough. Atkinson focused on a Coroner’s report and underwent participant observation at an office to see what methods they used to decide whether a death was suicide or not. Atkinson stated that they used ‘common sense’ theories of suicide so if certain information were to fit the theories it would be called a suicide. They would look at clues to help decided, Atkinson named a few to which he believed was important within their decisions. Firstly was there a suicide note left, this clearly is a big clue to whether or not the individual meant to kill themselves. Secondly how did the individual die as certain ways such as hanging point towards suicide, also the location of the body, usually if it is hidden away out of sight then the person is indicating that they did
Using material from Item A and elsewhere, assess different sociological explanations of suicide. (21 marks)
4. According to G. H. Mead, children learn to take the role of the other as they model themselves on important people in their lives, such as parents. Mead referred to these people as:
Durkheim proceeded to distinguish suicide into four different groups that related to the individual’s integration into society and in turn the social regulation of society over its members. ‘Consequently, we shall be able to determine the social types of suicide by classifying them not directly by their preliminarily described characteristics, but by the causes which produce them…. We will first seek the social conditions responsible for them; then group these conditions in a number of separate classes by their resemblances and differences, and we shall be sure that a specific type of suicide will correspond to each of these classes.’ (Durkheim, 1897) The four suicide groups were identified as Egotistic, Anomic, Altruistic and Fatalistic.
1.How do the perspectives of people from different cultures differ on social issues such as suicide? How does the psychological perspective view suicide? What is unique about the sociologist 's perspective?
Suicide is defined as “The action of killing oneself intentionally” within both South Korea and Wales. Suicide is seen as a huge social issue in both Wales and South Korea, both countries have seen a huge rise in suicide rates in the last decade but South Korea disproportionately sees a higher rate of suicide. Both countries are experiencing a rise in suicide rates and so, suicide is seen as a huge social issue, with government and non governmental bodies aiming to combat it. In my investigation I will not only be researching who this issue affects and what issues seem to be the main cause for the growth in suicide rates, but also responses and ways people have tried to tackle this problem. To do this I will have to follow my aims, which
Mental status has long known to be one of the leading causes of suicide. The main issue to look at from a sociological view is just how those mental status can be caused by society. Working long hours, taking little time off, and extended periods of time thinking only about
Feelings of isolation have been linked to higher suicide rates. Durkheim’s study on suicide during the industrial revolution supports this theory as he states that, “people were increasingly disconnected from their communities and that this social upheaval had a greater effect on suicide rates than other factors like wealth” (Winner & Collishaw, 2011). Interestingly enough, despite the increase of media attention on suicide, no studies have been published that explain why suicide rates vary among different groups. However, various factors are involved in the decision to commit suicide. As a result, suicide rates vary according to race, gender and age.
As I was reading through the different views on the causes of suicide, I thought that the sociocultural view made most sense for me. It made sense due to the claim that a person’s connections with social groups, religions, and communities can determine suicide probability (Comer, 2014). I imagine a sliding spectrum where people who are very invested in everything around them are on one end and on the other are people who don’t care about society. The two ends are the high suicide probability areas. Altruistic suicides where lives are sacrificed would fall on the invested end of the spectrum while the egoistic suicides which society has no control over a person and anomic suicides where a person’s social environment fails to provide structure
The suicide levels in America have now reached crisis levels. If suicide were a disease, it would be discussed on social media, the news and around the water cooler. People would be in a panic wondering how to counteract the “disease” and escape the clutches of it within their own personal lives. Doctors would appear on talk shows and the news educating the public on what they can do to prevent “suicide” from affecting their own lives. It would be labeled the epidemic taking out even the strongest among us in our modern generation. However, suicide isn’t a disease per say. It can be a symptom of a disease, such as depression. However, it in and of itself is only the embodiment and end-result of the despair and hopelessness that many people in America live with on a daily basis. Perhaps, if it was treated like a contagious, preventable disease, and not something to be ashamed of, less Americans would be meeting their end via suicide and instead seek the help they need to get better.
Suicide is the act of killing yourself. It is the 11th leading cause of death in America (CDC 2009). I have never had any intentions on committing suicide and I never really understood why people commit suicide that’s why I chose this topic to help me understand what problems people go through that makes them do such a thing. Sociology is the study of social behavior and the culture of humans. There are numerous reasons like financial stress, family problems or mental health disorders that lead to suicide. The number one cause of suicide is untreated depression. The issues that were just listed are some social conditions from society that results in a suicidal
Emile Durkheim was considered one of the greats of the sociology world. His use of scientific methodology to identify social factors which contributed to suicide has produced a foundational model for empirically based social research still relevant in sociology today. The purpose of this essay is to examine Durkheim’s study of the social causes of suicide, specifically how his theory of social integration and regulation contributed in interpreting these differences in suicide rates. This essay will argue that although heavily criticised Durkheim’s findings of the social factors which contributed to suicide are still relevant in Australia today more than a century later. In order to support this claim, firstly an overview of Durkheim’s social theory will be provided, specifically of his social causes of suicide. In addition it will then focus on how Durkheim interpreted these differences in suicide rates between various groups using his theory of social integration and discuss the two types of suicide Durkheim identified in this area. We will then discuss social regulation and its two forms of suicide. Criticism of his theory will then be discussed, before providing relevant statistics from Australia in regards to suicide rates of teen and indigenous communities and examine these figures to explain these variances in light of Durkheim’s social theory’s, to support the fact that Durkheim’s theory’s are still relevant in Australia today. Emile Durkheim was born in 1858 in a
Suicide, to Durkheim, is “an exaggerated form of ordinary practices,” and they arise from “comparable states of mind” in people, with the only difference between daily and suicidal behavior being the “chance of death” (Durkheim 20-21). Durkheim spends the majority of the work dissecting the “apparent motives” for suicide (Durkheim 151) and observing the varieties of suicide, a feat made difficult by the inaccurate reporting and misunderstandings of investigators. Thus, to understand the types of suicide, we must “reverse the order of our research” for “There can only be as many different types of suicide as there are differences in the causes from which they derive,” (Durkheim 149). He says “if they were all found to have the same essential characteristics, they would be grouped in one class” but “observations that we would need to have are more or less impossible obtain” (Durkheim
Eating Disorders affect not only the human body but the mental state of those who suffer with the illness. The result of eating disorders is commonly fatal, resulting in suicide or other bodily damages and mental issue. Different types of eating disorders exist, such as anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa and binge eating disorder. Each disorder affects the body and mind in harsh ways which will be discussed furthermore. These types of illnesses can be placed in the general area of social psychology and brain functioning.
Durkheim does not see egoism, altruism, anomie and fatalism as types of suicide, but types of social structure that highlight the presence or lack of integration and regulation. It must be stressed that this excess/lack of integration and regulation are not seen as direct causes of suicide, rather Durkheim sees a number of voluntary deaths in society as inevitable; integration and regulation are merely prophylactic to suicidal impulses, which when taken to excess or dramatically reduced, fail to act as a preventative, and so suicides occur. This clarification is an important strength of Durkheim’s theory: it allows the biography of the individuals who kill themselves to vary, while still explaining underlying pressures/lack of to explain their deaths, and the varying suicide rates between groups.
The biggest aspect that is determined to be behind these teenage suicides is the feeling of being socially rejected in some way. These individuals may consider themselves outliers to society. Struggling to find in-groups and primary groups in which they can relate to. The constant feeling of rejection and hurt from being neglected by peers and family is what makes these individuals