The Social Meanings of Suicide

Description

This book presents a review and criticism of all sociological literature on suicide, from Emile Durkheim's influential Suicide (1897) to contemporary writings by sociologists who have patterned their own work on Durkheim's. Douglas points out fundamental weaknesses in the structural-functional study of suicide, and offers an alternative theoretical approach. He demonstrates the unreliability of official statistics on suicide and contends that Durkheim's explanations of suicide rates in terms of abstract social meanings are founded on an inadequate and misleading statistical base. The study of suicidal actions, Douglas argues, requires an examination of the individual's own construction of his actions. He analyzes revenge, escape, and sympathy motives; using diaries, notes, and observers' reports, he shows how the social meanings of actual cases should be studied. Originally published in 1967. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These paperback editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905. Preface Contents Introduction Part I. The Durkheimian Approach to Suicide 1. The Historical Context of Durkheim's Theory of Suicide 2. Durkheim's Suicide Part II. The Post-Durkheimian Sociological Theories of Suicide 3. Introduction to the Post-Durkheimian Theories 4. The Gibbs and Martin Status Integration Theory of Suicide 5. Powell's Status and Anomie Theory of Suicide 6. The Ecological Theories of Suicide 7. The Status-Change Theories of Suicide 8. Halbwachs' Subculture Theory of Suicide 9. The Henry and Short Theory of Suicide 10. Gold's Theory of Suicide 11. A Summary of the Weaknesses and Contributions of Sociological Works on Suicide Part III. Official Statistics on Suicide and Their Use in Sociological Works 12. The Nature and Use of The Official Statistics on Suicide Part IV. Suicidal Actions and Socially Meaningful Actions 13. Social Actions as Meaningful Actions: Fundamental Considerations of the Nature of "Meaning" 14. The Construction of Social Meanings 15. Sources of Information and the Construction of a Theory of Suicidal Actions as Socially Meaningful Actions 16. General Dimensions of the Meanings of Suicidal Phenomena 17. Common Patterns of Meanings Constructed in Which the Meanings of Suicidal Actions are of Fundamental Importance 18. The Suicidal Process 19. General Conclusion Appendix I Appendix II Bibliography Index