Cultural specificity and universality of suicide: Challenges for the International Association for Suicide Prevention

Résumé

Even though suicide occurs in every culture, we may wonder if the phenomenon of suicide is essentially universal, or if we are dealing with a specific behavior whose etiology varies from culture to culture. Or, we may ask how much of our general understanding of suicide is applicable across cultures and when cultural factors may have a predominant influence. This question has important implications for transcultural research, as well as the future of the International Association for Suicide Prevention (IASP) in determining the orientation of its new initiatives. Until now, the emphasis in IASP has been upon commonalities in suicide, with adaptations to specific cultures and settings. Suicidology research tends to either ignore cultural differences entirely or focus upon a specific culture without examining possible commonalities across cultures. An important challenge for future research is to explore and understand the frontier between universal aspects of suicide and its cultural specificity. There are many examples of culturally specific suicide prevention initiatives that are not published in professional journals, but which may add to our understanding of suicide prevention and inspire people in other cultures in their efforts. The goal of new IASP initiatives is to increase exchange between individuals from different backgrounds in order to develop new ways of conceptualizing problems and planning activities in suicide prevention. CULTURE PRÉVENTION ETHNICITÉ MOYEN SPIRITUALITÉ FACTEUR-RISQUE ARGUMENT