Very little of the professional literature on suicide deals with suicide in jails, and virtually no references to juvenile suicide in adult jails exist. To determine if the rate of juvenile suicide in adult jails might be higher than that in secure juvenile detention centers, suicidal conduct was used as the indicator of the harmful effects of…

Distinctions between non-suicidal and suicidal depression were investigated. Epidemiological profiles of depressed patients (40 suicidal and 40 non-suicidal) were matched for sex and age. Independent raters diagnosed each subject according to five classifications of depression. The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) scores for each…

This report discusses trends in the causes of child deaths in New Jersey in recent years and closely examines child deaths in the state in 1974. Demographic data on child deaths are reported with an emphasis on types of deaths in which neglect or nonaccidental injury are likely to have been a factor. Death certificate data were obtained from the…

Health problems among the American Indians have been of major concern to the U.S. Public Health Service for some time. As major inroads are now being made into infectious diseases, maternal and child health, and many chronic illnesses, the problems of the mental health of Indians come into a more central focus. Within the framework of mental…

In order to understand the emotional state that leads a young person to self-destruction, it is important to look at what is considered a normal adolescence. Lists four factors that explain why adolescence is a time of great depression, four myths associated with the reasons for suicide, some factors that create situations for which suicide is the…

Investigates in a controlled setting effects of a suicide threat. Produced greater self-rated anxiety and tension, greater physiological arousal, and an increase in the likelihood that the subject would talk to the stimulus person about suicide, death, or dying. (Author)

Proposes general strategies for group survivorship intervention in a case study of an elementary school student's suicide. Examines these strategies with specific reference to intervention efforts involving the class, student body, teachers, principal, and parents at the elementary school. (Author/ABB)

Administered Suicide Opinion Questionnaire to 116 junior high school students. Content analysis yielded nine clusters of items. Results reflect complexity of attitudes toward suicide, a heterogeneity of responses, as well as substantial commonality. Approximately 20 percent of respondents reported seriously thinking about suicide; somewhat higher…

Psychometric properties of the Hopelessness Scale for Children (HSC) were evaluated with 834 normal adolescents and 93 adolescent suicide attempters. Positive correlations with depression and depressive attributional style were found for the suicide attempter group. These and other results are discussed in terms of the utility of the HSC. (JW)

An historical overview of suicide in childhood and adolescence is presented. Current legal, etiological, and treatment issues related to the act of self-destruction, including data from British Columbia and other Canadian provinces are discussed. The role of the teacher in prevention and in providing support services for the bereaved is…

Relates a detailed chronology of events and community responses following the suicide of a 16-year-old honor student in a small rural community written by counselor educators from a local university. Concludes risk of suicide still seems great because changes in community have been small; claims this is typical of a national dilemma. (ABL)

Among 433 high school seniors, 12 percent were determined to be either polydrug users or abusers. Comparisons between nonpolydrug users and polydrug users on family violence, personality traits, psychological characteristics, and behavior are given. (Author/BL)

Counseling center directors completed a questionnaire assessing procedures for keeping records of suicide at their institutions. Only a small number of institutions compiled systematic records concerning suicide. The establishment of a national clearinghouse for compiling data on suicide attempts and completions would allow for greater…

Suggested that every hospital should have a suicide prevention committee which establishes written guidelines after surveying security areas and talking with staff and patients. Reasonable treatment requires that each patient be evaluated for suicide risk and that staff follow a treatment plan according to the hospital's own policies. (JAC)

Examined annual official national statistics for specific methods of suicide by sex and racial group from 1923 to 1978. Shifts were found in suicide methods employed, most notably for women and Asian Americans. Generally, firearm use increased among nearly all ethnic/racial-sex groups while the use of poisons declined. (JAC)