Exposure to Suicide and Identification as Survivor

Abstract

Kinship proximity and relationship category to the deceased appeared to be unrelated to survivor status, but perceived psychological closeness to the deceased showed a robust association with self-identified survivor status. We need an expanded definition of "suicide survivor" to account for the profound impact of suicide in the community.

The Usage of Digital Resources by Swedish Suicide Bereaved in Their Grief Work: A Survey Study

“…Notably, the respondents who lost a child to suicide did not show more severe psychosocial distress than other respondents, suggesting that it is the loss to suicide in itself that is the primarily devastating experience and profound limit situation for those that are closely related to the deceased (cf. Cerel et al, 2013).…”

“…Beyond the tragic of loss of individual lives, every death to suicide has a ripple effect and is estimated to deeply affect 6 to 14 relatives and close friends (Clark & Goldney, 2000;Jones & Meier, 2011;Jordan & McIntosh, 2011b). Also, from a long-term perspective, what seems to influence the bereaved most in their grief is not primarily a kinship relation, but the perception of closeness to the deceased (Cerel, Maple, Aldrich, & Van de Venne, 2013).…”

Association Between Suicidal Ideation and Exposure to Suicide in Social Relationships Among Family, Friend, and Acquaintance Survivors in South Korea

“…Exposure to suicide is defined as one's experience of having lost to suicide someone in his/her social relationships, including family, friends, and peers. Relatedly, “suicide survivors” and “those bereaved by suicide” are widely used to refer to the individuals who have been affected by suicide (Cerel et al., ). In a study using the results of the 1994 U.S. Census Bureau's telephone interviews, Crosby and Sacks () found that 7% of the total U.S. population were exposed to suicide in social relations, 1.1% lost family members or relatives to suicide, and 5.4% experienced the suicide of their friends or acquaintances in the previous year.…”

“…Cerel et al. () conducted a random telephone survey to learn that 40% of respondents had lost to suicide someone they knew and about 20% of those with such experience identified themselves as suicide survivors, meaning that their life was significantly influenced by the suicide. Whether or not one sees himself/herself as a suicide survivor is related to the degree of closeness he/she perceives of his/her relationship with the decedent ( very close , somewhat close , not close at all ).…”

“…As explained earlier, exposure to suicide significantly increases suicidal ideation and behaviors among survivors, not to mention inflicting psychosocial and physical damages to them (Crosby & Sacks, ; Ho, Leung, Hung, Lee, & Tang, ; Latham & Prigerson, ; Lewinsohn, Rohde, & Seeley, ; Pompili et al., ; Prigerson et al., ; Rubenstein, Halton, Kasten, Rubin, & Stechler, ; Szanto, Prigerson, Houck, Ehrenpreis, & Reynolds, ). A recent study on suicide survivors found that self‐identified survivor status is related not to kinship proximity but to perceived psychological closeness to the suicide committer (Cerel, Maple, Aldrich, & van de Venne, ). It has been argued that suicide affects not only immediate family members but also a variety of other relationships, including friends, neighbors, patients, and colleagues (Lewinsohn et al., ; Prigerson et al., ; Rubenstein et al., ), with perceived closeness with the deceased positively affecting the survivor's suicidal behaviors (Ho et al., ).…”