Advancing Prevention Research on the Role of Culture in Suicide Prevention: An Introduction

Abstract

U.S. patterns of suicidal behavior associated with age, gender, and ethnicity provide profound evidence that cultural factors are associated with risk and protective factors for suicidal behavior. In response to the need to enhance the understanding of the phenomenology of suicidal behavior among U.S. ethnic minority populations, the NIH Office of Rare Diseases, National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), the Indian Health Service, the Adolescent Risk Communication Institute of the Annenberg Public Policy Center, and the Emerging Scholars Interdisciplinary Network (ESIN) co-sponsored a workshop entitled "Pragmatic Considerations of Culture in Preventing Suicide" (NIMH, 2004). The workshop was held at the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania on September 9-10, 2004. The ESIN study group on African American suicide, comprised of young investigators, brought to the meeting their interests in the development of new models of suicidal behavior risk and protection for U.S. populations of color and related implications for research training needs.The purpose of the meeting was to examine how culture can be considered in research design, development, and implementation of suicidal behavior prevention programs. This workshop examined the role of culture on suicidal behaviors. Culture is defined as self and community identity, community norms, and behavioral practices, and its affect on how individuals engage in behavior linked to life or death outcomes. As noted by Corin (1996), cultural beliefs and practices "force themselves on individuals" who then interpret, negotiate, and subvert them "through daily practice." Suicidal behavior, like all other behavior, is influenced by culture. Cultural influences are revealed in the choice of methods, the characteristics of the typical suicidal person and precipitating events, and the conflicts and emotions attributed as causes of the suicidal behavior in each community. In other words, cultures influence the risk for suicidal behavior by defining the meanings and consequences of different kinds of suicidal behaviors (Canetto & Lester, 1998).In this section, we present three promising, culturally-based research models which highlight theories of risk and protective factors for youth suicidality interventions among African American, Hispanic/Latino, and American Indian communities.This series of articles emerged as a product of the workshop on the prevention of youth suicidal behavior and early research efforts delving into the general understanding of the role of culture, ethnicity, and youth suicidal behaviors. Recognizing that this field is in an early stage of development, approaches to theory, measurement selection, and intervention development for each of the three studies will be presented with regard to their strengths and opportunities for further development. Each intervention model focuses on suicide risk in youth and addresses culture in diverse ways.NIH Public Access

Male Infertility and Depression: A Neglected Problem in the Middle East

“…Different cultural and ethnic characteristics of the samples in the studies could be the contributing factor for such a wide report of depression [28]. Ethnicity has been associated with the origin of distress coping and help‐seeking strategies [29–31], doctor and patient interactions [32], suicidality [27,33,34], as well as adherence to treatment [27]. Results of the current study showed that infertile Azari men were more likely to report depression symptoms compared with their infertile counterparts from other ethnic groups.…”

Clinical Interventions to Reduce Suicidal Behaviors in Hispanic Adolescents: A Scoping Review

“…In light of the empirical evidence discussed above regarding the impact of cultural considerations on both the risk factors and help-seeking behaviors for suicidality across various ethnicities/races (especially Hispanics), it is crucial that these factors be considered in suicidality intervention research with diverse populations. To highlight the importance of cultural considerations in the area of suicidality and the broader mental health field, many scholars continuously advocate for the use of a CRF to guide research, practice, and education (Berryman et al, 2013;Bluehen-Unger et al, 2017;Goldston et al, 2008;Joe, Canetto, & Romer, 2008). While highly advocated for, there is no universal definition of what encompasses a CRF (Seponski et al, 2013).…”

The Racial-Cultural Framework

“…Culture has had an increasingly prominent role in suicidology scholarship (Goldston et al, 2008;Lester, 2008;Shropshire, Pearson, Joe, Romer, & Canetto, 2008). Culture has had an increasingly prominent role in suicidology scholarship (Goldston et al, 2008;Lester, 2008;Shropshire, Pearson, Joe, Romer, & Canetto, 2008).…”

“…We encourage researchers to address the complex ways in which culture can serve as both risk and protective factors for suicide-related outcomes in communities of color. Culture has had an increasingly prominent role in suicidology scholarship (Goldston et al, 2008;Lester, 2008;Shropshire, Pearson, Joe, Romer, & Canetto, 2008). Most studies on culture and suicide-related outcomes can be classified into two areas-(a) demographic differences and (b) acculturation and enculturation.…”