Suicide is the act of killing oneself intentionally. Suicide is seen as an extremely personal act but sociologists such as Emile Durkheim believed that suicide is caused or influenced by social factors. Emile Durkheim (1858-1917) was a French sociologist and his study; Suicide (1897) was a study of suicide rates in different social populations.
Durkheim wanted to understand why some people were more likely to commit suicide than others. Durkheim used the term social integration and he found that when there was a lack of social integration (anomie) a person was more likely to commit suicide .
He was the first to identify that social factors influenced the causes of suicide over an individual’s personality. He observed that the rate of suicide varied with time and location, so he looked for links to factors other than emotional stress and he also studied how much people felt integrated into their society and social surroundings . Durkheim concluded that suicide rates were affected by different social factors and his study also found that people with certain personality traits and people who were influenced by these certain social factors were at a higher risk of committing suicide.
Durkheim found that Catholics and Jews were less likely to commit suicide …show more content…
According to Durkheim one type of suicide, called egotistic suicide, is when a man becomes socially isolated or feels that he has no place in the society he destroys himself . He identified another type of suicide called anomic suicide. This type of suicide is due to a breakdown of social balance. Another was called fatalistic suicide which is suicide due to overregulation in society. For example, when a slave or servant commits suicide. Lastly altruistic suicide is suicide that occurs when individuals and groups become too close and intimate. This kind of suicide is a result of over integration into a social group
Durkheim wanted to understand why some people were more likely to commit suicide than others. Durkheim used the term social integration and he found that when there was a lack of social integration (anomie) a person was more likely to commit suicide .
He was the first to identify that social factors influenced the causes of suicide over an individual’s personality. He observed that the rate of suicide varied with time and location, so he looked for links to factors other than emotional stress and he also studied how much people felt integrated into their society and social surroundings . Durkheim concluded that suicide rates were affected by different social factors and his study also found that people with certain personality traits and people who were influenced by these certain social factors were at a higher risk of committing suicide.
Durkheim found that Catholics and Jews were less likely to commit suicide …show more content…
According to Durkheim one type of suicide, called egotistic suicide, is when a man becomes socially isolated or feels that he has no place in the society he destroys himself . He identified another type of suicide called anomic suicide. This type of suicide is due to a breakdown of social balance. Another was called fatalistic suicide which is suicide due to overregulation in society. For example, when a slave or servant commits suicide. Lastly altruistic suicide is suicide that occurs when individuals and groups become too close and intimate. This kind of suicide is a result of over integration into a social group