The Epidemic of Male Suicide

1248 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Cause and effect of suicide

“Suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem.” - Phil Donahue. As a complex, tragic public health issue, suicide occurs in men significantly more often than in women. Suicide is simply defined as the act of intentionally ending one’s own life, but the factors that play into a person making that decision are anything but simple. The most obvious and severe effect of suicide is the loss of a valuable, meaningful human life. According to Harvard School of Public Health (n.d.), suicide affects parents, children, siblings, friends, lovers and spouses; the loss for society is psychological, spiritual, and financial. People who lose a loved one to suicide often experience devastating effects and deal with a complex grief. These “suicide survivors” typically feel a range of emotions from sadness, blame, and guilt to extreme anger and confusion. “Suicide among males is four times higher than among females and represents 79% of all U.S. suicides” (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, 2012). This gender paradox is one of the most compelling components regarding who is most at risk to attempt suicide. Why is it that men commit suicide more often than women? More than four times as many men as women die by suicide because depressed men are less likely to seek out help, men typically use more violent, lethal methods and cannot be resuscitated, and men carry the pressure of employment, providing for and protecting a family, and maintaining relationships.
In the past decade, suicide rates have been on the incline; especially among men. According to the New York Times (2013), “From 1999 to 2010, the suicide rate among Americans ages 35 to 64 rose by nearly 30 percent… The suicid...

... middle of paper ...

...o is most affected by suicide?. Retrieved from http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/means-matter/basic-suicide-facts/who/
Samaritans. (2012, September). Masculinities. Retrieved from http://www.samaritans.org/sites/default/files/kcfinder/files/Men and Suicide Research Report 210912.pdf
The New York Times. (2013, May 2). Suicide rates rise sharply in U.S.. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/03/health/suicide-rate-rises-sharply-in-us.html
WebMD, LLC. (n.d.). Depression in men. Retrieved from http://www.webmd.com/depression/depression-men
Weissmann, J. (2013, September 3). The overhyped rise of stay-at-home dads. Retrieved from http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2013/09/the-overhyped-rise-of-stay-at-home-dads/279279/
Wang, W., Parker, K., & Taylor , P. (2013, May 29). Breadwinner moms. Retrieved from http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2013/05/29/breadwinner-moms/

Show More
Related

  • The Mask You Live In Research Paper

    1082 Words  | 3 Pages

    According to the Centers for Disease Control, men are more likely to drink in excess than women, leading to “higher rates of alcohol-related deaths and hospitalizations.” Every day, 3 or more boys commit suicide. For boys, suicide is the third leading cause of death. Studies have shown that “males take their own lives at nearly four times the rate of females and comprise approximately 80 percent of all suicides and suicide attempts among women are estimated to be three to four times higher than that of their male counterparts.” Boys and men who hide behind a mask everyday have a lot of emotions bottled up that need to be released, which can lead them to be aggressive or violent.

    Read More

  • Surviving Suicide: Isolated by Social Stigmas

    2023 Words  | 5 Pages

    World health Organization (WHO) (2011). Facts and figures, Suicide. Retrieved November 2, 2011 from http://www.WHO.int

    Read More

  • Adolescent Suicide

    2596 Words  | 6 Pages

    In a study released by Brown University, their psychology department shed some light on common myths and facts surrounded suicide. These m...

    Read More

  • The Growing Problem of Teen Suicide

    2340 Words  | 5 Pages

    A 17 year old boy, Douglas Stewart, came home from school to find his mother lying on the sofa with a strained back. Being concerned for her he rubbed her back briefly then put on some easy listening music. Douglas then proceeded downstairs to his bedroom. Two of his friends came to the door. His mother waited to see if he would return to answer it; minutes later she answered and then yelled for him to come up. When he did not come, she went downstairs to get him. That is when she found him strangled and her son’s body dangling from the ceiling. This is a senseless tragic sight for a mother to endure. The mortality rate from suicide in 1996 showed 9.5 per 100,000 for 15-19 year olds. This also shows boys are four times more likely to commit suicide then girls. However, girls are twice as likely to attempt suicide. (American 1996) It is imperative to reverse this trend and in doing so we need to understand the characteristics, behaviors and events associated with youth suicide.

    Read More

  • The Gender and Chemistry of Suicide

    940 Words  | 2 Pages

    Men are more likely to carry out a suicide and women are more likely to attempt

    Read More

  • Military Suicides

    2681 Words  | 6 Pages

    Among American civilians, whites have historically and significantly led the way in the rates of suicides. Although leveling off after the 1990’s, the rate of white suicides has still been almost twice as much as minority groups. It has also been shown that males commit suicide significantly more than females.

    Read More

  • Depressed and Suicidal Patients

    1198 Words  | 3 Pages

    There are multiple reasons why a person becomes depressed and suicidal. Examples include job loss, death of loved one, and/or drug abuse. According to the American Association of Suicidology approximately 18.8 million or 9.5% American adults suffer with some form of “depressive illness” (AAS, 23 June 2009). Out of the 18.8 million adults suffering with depression 20% of those adults who are left untreated will try to commit suicide (AAS, June 23, 2009). Men are more likely to commit suicide; where as women are more likely to become depressed. “About 7 out of every hundred men and 1 out of every hundred women who have been diagnosed with depression in their lifetime will go on to complete suicide” (AAS, June 23, 2009).

    Read More

  • Suicide from a Psychological, Sociological and Anthropological Perspective

    1263 Words  | 3 Pages

    Suicide is a sad story many people are reluctant to approach. But when somebody nearest to them kills themselves, they feel the compelling guilt of trying to understand the motive behind the death. It is a complex and rather devastating subject. Many who kill themselves can never come back to tell us what happened and why it did. Suicide takes an emotional toll on it's survivors and wreck havoc in the wake of the surrounding victims. What causes suicide is a probing series of many theories, and yet not one definitive answer. The prevention of suicide is also difficult to pinpoint, but only because the intent is unknown. The importance of researching the motives of the suicidal is essential to modern humanity as a whole, because in the era we live in, suicide rates are climbing faster than ever. Understanding the driving force behind suicide is what can help the field of social science to save the conscience mind of many people from self-destruction - and save their lives, and the emotions of their loved ones.

    Read More

  • Youth Suicide

    940 Words  | 2 Pages

    The rates of suicide when focusing on gender differ from region to region, providing conflicting information on whether males or females are more at risk for suicide. Of teenagers aged 15-19 in ______, 9 out of 100,000 kids successfully committed suicide from 2005-2010 (Suicide Attempts)*. LGBT or other sexual minority children and teenagers also are at risk for committing suicide. Approximately 1 in 3 youths that consider themselves part of a sexual minority reported attempting suicide, compared to 1 in 12 heterosexual youths (Intersecting Identities)*. Warning signs of suicide include depression and withdrawal, risky or harmful activities, showing an interest in death or “making comments that things would be better without them” (Teen Bullying & Suicide)*.

    Read More

  • Cause And Effect Essay On Mental Health

    1149 Words  | 3 Pages

    Suicide is when someone takes their own life. There are various reasons why someone might end their own life. Most of the time depression has a significant impact towards suicide. For the 2020 measurement, the value we are working toward is to reduce the rate of suicidal deaths. The baseline measurement is 11.3 suicides per 100,000 population occurred in 2007. The target is to bring suicide rates to 10.2 suicides per 100,000 population. The target- setting method is a 10 percent improvement on suicidal deaths. The data that is measured is measured by the numerator representing the number of deaths due to suicide and the denominator representing the number of people per

    Read More

  • Suicide Prevention

    1876 Words  | 4 Pages

    Dokoupil, Tony. A. The "Suicide Epidemic" Newsweek Global 161.19 (2013): 1 Business Source Premier. EBSCO. Web.

    Read More

  • Baumeister's Theory Of Male Suicide

    1869 Words  | 4 Pages

    A useful framework to analyze male suicide is Baumeister’s escape theory of suicide. This theory states that suicide is a method of problem solving which is used when people are unable to recognize other options for themselves in stressful situations. It occurs when people become fixated on their failures (Coleman, Kaplan and Casey, 2011). Studies have shown that men, specifically unemployed men, tend to score higher on scales which measure social perfectionism (Wyllie et al, 2012). Social perfectionism is defined as the belief that one must always meet the expectations of others and society even when those expectations are unrealistic. The unrealistic cultural expectations that males strive to achieve is likely associated with cultural expectations of gender behaviour, showing the interplay between anthropological and psychological factors. These high levels of social perfectionism can lead to fixation on failures and lead to a narrowed state of mind, or cognitive rigidity. This cognitive rigidity can drive men to suicide as they are not able to recognize other methods of coping with their stress and problems. A point of note is that certain aspects of masculinity, such as fathering, can play a positive role and be protective against suicide (Coleman, Kaplan and Casey, 2011). In fact, studies have shown that scoring higher on scales measuring masculinity can be protective against suicide (Coleman, Kaplan and Casey, 2011). These studies show that masculinity itself is not inherently problematic, but that the feeling of inadequacy at failing to live by a masculine set of standards is the main cause for

    Read More

  • The Problem of Teenage Suicide

    1928 Words  | 4 Pages

    From 1980 to 1996, the rate of suicide among African-American males aged 15 to 19 years increased by 105 percent.

    Read More

  • Is Suicide the Solution?

    1534 Words  | 4 Pages

    New Haven: Yale University Press, 2004. Print. The. Suicide and Suicidal Behaviors. Suicide : Medline Plus.

    Read More

  • Benefits of Being a Working Mother

    1101 Words  | 3 Pages

    "The Harried Life of the Working Mother." PewResearch Social and Demographic Trends. Pew Research Center, 1 Oct. 2009. Web. 9 Dec. 2013.

    Read More

More about The Epidemic of Male Suicide

Open Document