The Stigma of Suicide Survivorship and Related Consequences—A Systematic Review

Hanschmidt, Franz; Lehnig, Franziska; Riedel‐Heller, Steffi G.; Kersting, Anette

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0162688

Cited by 135 publications

(106 citation statements)

References 66 publications

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“…This finding that fear of stigmatisation is a major concern for suicide survivors is also documented in a number of studies (Young et al 2012;Pitman et al 2016;Scocco et al 2012;Peters et al 2016). Also, all the participants in this study similar to those in other studies (Nic an Fhaili et al 2016;Hanschmidt et al 2016) said they would not accept any form of help with respect to the event. One participant (G3P1) put it succinctly as follows:…”

Section: Fear Of Stigmasupporting

confidence: 81%

“Doctor, please don’t say he died by suicide”: exploring the burden of suicide survivorship in a developing country

Ohayi

2019

Egypt J Forensic Sci

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Background: Annually, 800, 000 die from suicide worldwide. However, suicide is believed to be rare in our environment. Suicide causes significant life disruptions in people bereaved by it. These disruptions result from associated complicated grieving pattern characterised by stigma, feeling of shame, responsibility, guilt, etc. People therefore usually want to be certain that their relation indeed died from suicide. Being certain can in part help survivors achieve closure. A pathologist is often called upon to diagnose the actual cause of death in suspected suicide. The aim of this paper is to highlight the perception and attitude of survivors to suicide in our environment. Methods: This is a prospective study carried out in Enugu State University Teaching Hospital, Enugu, Nigeria. Data was obtained by audio-recording and transcription of face-to-face interviews of 8 groups of relatives who had presented to the pathologist for autopsy of their relation suspected to have committed suicide. Transcribed data was double checked for accuracy and analysed. Informed consent was obtained from participants. Ethical clearance was obtained from the Ethical Committee of the hospital. Results: There were 8 cases of suspected suicide over a 7-year period accounting for 0.6% of all violent deaths in the period. The central attitude of survivors in all the cases was denial of the event. At all the meetings survivors desired the pathologist to report cause of death differently than suicide. Also, in all cases, the extended family felt affected by the event. The following six themes in descending order of importance were identified to underlie survivors' attitude to suicide: fear of stigma and its consequent isolation, fear of economic repercussions, a conflict of choice of cause of death stemming from religious beliefs about the afterlife, feeling of shame and anger against the deceased and fear that acknowledging the event may bring a repeat in the family. Conclusion: There is profound fear of stigma and associative concerns which leads to outright suicide-denial. There is a need to educate the society about the reality and dynamics of suicide. This will make a bereaved person open to receiving requisite care.

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Section: Fear Of Stigmasupporting

confidence: 81%

“Doctor, please don’t say he died by suicide”: exploring the burden of suicide survivorship in a developing country

Ohayi

2019

Egypt J Forensic Sci

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“…(Mayo Clinic On-line Grief Pamphlet, 2019) These expectations of feeling guilty and blameworthy in the death are so widely shared that there are few researches probing into whether there are variations in these feelings from one suicide bereaved person to another and what might explain why some of those bereaved will experience greater feelings of blameworthiness than others (Cerel et al, 2008;Hanschmidt et al, 2016;Shields et al, 2017;Sheehan et al, 2018).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Feelings of Blameworthiness and Their Associations With the Grieving Process in Suicide Mourning

Feigelman

Cerel

2020

Front. Psychol.

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Aims: This study focuses on identifying the correlates associated with the emergence of feelings of blameworthiness associated with a suicide or other traumatic death and its associations with grief complications.Methods: Based on a mailed questionnaire survey of 575 mostly white and economically advantaged bereaved parents, 462 who lost a child to suicide, 48 to a drug overdose, 37 to ordinary accidents, and 24 to natural causes, we utilized chi-square tests, correlations and multiple regression analysis to compare and contrast patterns in the data.Results: Findings showed feelings of blameworthiness associated with grief difficulties, complicated grief, PTSD, depression and other mental health difficulties among suicide bereaved parents. Results among suicide bereaved parents also showed that being stigmatized by socially significant others, having a mixed or negative relationship with the deceased child prior to the death and a less happy marriage, among those presently married couples, all contributed to higher feelings of blameworthiness among these bereaved.Conclusion: Based on these findings, feelings of blameworthiness could serve as a good shorthand indicator of grief problems since it correlates so well with other grief difficulties and mental health problem measures. The importance of peer support is essential for avoiding the downward spiral associated with feelings of blameworthiness that can occur at any time during the grieving process.

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“…Such comparisons could be used to further establish the validity of the newly developed CBSQ, and shed light on the potential uniqueness of grief-related beliefs in Chinese Shidu parents. For example, fear of stigma is commonly reported following the death of a loved one (Hanschmidt, Lehnig, Riedel-Heller, & Kersting, 2016;Riggs, Due, & Tape, 2018). Future research could assess to what extent perceived stigma items of the CBSQ are indeed specific to the Chinese culture.…”

Section: Limitations and Future Directionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Culture-related grief beliefs of Chinese Shidu parents: Development and psychometric properties of a new scale

Shi

Wen

et al. 2019

European Journal of Psychotraumatology

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Background: In China, parents whose only-child dies and who have no living or adopted child are called Shidu parents. Negative thinking is assumed to contribute to the development of emotional problems in bereavement. Because grief cognitions are likely influenced by the concepts of Chinese traditional culture (e.g., family continuation), Shidu parents may hold specific culture-related grief beliefs about themselves or the world, which, in turn, could impede their recovery. Objective: This study developed a questionnaire assessing the culture-related grief beliefs of Shidu parents and examined its psychometric properties. Methods: This newly developed questionnaire was administered to the combined sample of 313 Shidu parents. Exploratory (n = 164) and confirmatory factor analysis (n = 149) were conducted. Psychometric properties of the questionnaire were evaluated. Results: Exploratory factor analysis revealed three distinct factors (filial piety belief, destiny belief and perceived stigma), generating a nine-item culture-related grief beliefs of Shidu parents questionnaire (CBSQ). Confirmatory factor analysis verified the three-factor structure (χ 2 (24) = 39.103, p = 0.027, χ 2 /df = 1.630, CFI = .980, TLI = .970, RMSEA = .065, SRMR = .052). Internal consistency and temporal stability were adequate. Convergent, discriminant and concurrent validity were supported. Conclusions: This study highlights the importance of extending the concept of grief cognitions to include culture-specific beliefs, and provides a first measurement tool to assess culture-related grief beliefs after only-child loss, which can be used in future research with Shidu parents. Creencias del duelo relacionadas a la cultura en padres Shidu Chinos: Desarrollo y propiedades psicométricas de una nueva escala. Antecedentes: En China, los padres quienes fallece su único hijo y no tienen hijos vivos o adoptados son llamados padres Shidu. Se asume que el pensamiento negativo contribuye a problemas emocionales en el duelo. Dado que las cogniciones del duelo son probablemente influenciadas por los conceptos de la cultura tradicional China (por ejemplo, continuación de la familia), los padres Shidu pueden mantener creencias del duelo específicas relacionadas a la cultura acerca de sí mismos o el mundo, las cuales, a su vez, podrían impedir su recuperación. Objetivo: Este estudio desarrolló un cuestionario de evaluación de las creencias del duelo relacionadas a la cultura de los padres Shidu y examinó sus propiedades psicométricas. Métodos: Este cuestionario recientemente desarrollado fue administrado a la muestra combinada de 313 padres Shidu. Se realizaron análisis factoriales exploratorio (n=164) y confirmatorio (n=149). Se evaluó las propiedades psicométricas del cuestionario. Resultados: El análisis factorial exploratorio reveló tres factores distintos (creencia de devoción filial, creencia en el destino y estigma percibido), generando un cuestionario de 9 ítems de creencias del duelo relacionadas a la cultura en padres Shidu (CBSQ, por su sigla en...

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The Stigma of Suicide Survivorship and Related Consequences—A Systematic Review

Cited by 135 publications

References 66 publications

“Doctor, please don’t say he died by suicide”: exploring the burden of suicide survivorship in a developing country

“Doctor, please don’t say he died by suicide”: exploring the burden of suicide survivorship in a developing country

Feelings of Blameworthiness and Their Associations With the Grieving Process in Suicide Mourning

Culture-related grief beliefs of Chinese Shidu parents: Development and psychometric properties of a new scale

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