Ethnicity: How much of our understanding of suicide is applicable across ethnic cultures?

Résumé

How do you sort people? Attempts to communicate suicide prevention and intervention messages to diverse populations can be complicated. What are the primary constructs? Do we consider color of skin, shared heritage, cultural beliefs, and religious beliefs? In fact, there are various belief systems, religious practices, and behavioral patterns that must be considered for each ethnic population. Because suicide prevention and intervention initiatives focus on behavioral change—i.e., developing practices to minimize suicidality—the primary construct should be behavioral. It is important to be clear on the targeted behavior to be changed, and to understand what controls such behavior, such as attitude, perceived norms, or personal agency (Institute of Medicine, 2002). Suicide is multidimensional and therefore efforts to understand suicide and prevention and intervention should be multilayered. The differences in suicidal behavior can be explained partly by differences in psychiatric disorders. There are also critical questions associated with race, ethnicity, and culture. Finally, successful suicide prevention interventions in diverse communities require a sophisticated understanding of the complex dynamics of ötherness," or feelings of öutsiderness" and "insiderness." Unless this understanding is combined with a deep appreciation of the political, social, and psychological phenomena, even very sincere and well-intentioned efforts to promote social change or healing are easily thwarted. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved) ETHNICITÉ CULTURE