People with PTSD are more likely to commit suicide than others in the population (notecard study on suicide and ptsd). In another study, refugees from an active war zone both with and without depression had increased suicidal thoughts…
One of the first people to initiate a scientific study on suicide was a French sociologist named Emile Durkheim. He focused on the social factors that affected suicide until he finally came up with four types, that being, egoistic, altruistic, anomic and fatalistic. Durkheim further classified the four types into seven subtypes and six mixed types, but our focus will be on the four basic types (as cited in Maris,…
POSITION PAPER ON AIR FORCE SUICIDE PREVENTION 1. This paper will discuss the issue of whether or not the Air Force (AF) does enough to combat suicide. The paper will begin with the Air Force Suicide Prevention Program (AFSPP) and the problems it is facing. Next, the paper will offer solutions to further enhance the program. Lastly, the paper will advocate for the best solution to effectively impact the AF community.…
I. Summary In Emile Durkheim’s Suicide and Modernity, he expresses his belief that human needs are infinite. The only moderating power of our infinite needs, Durkheim believes, is society. If something happens to go wrong and these needs grow too great, a person would live in a world of unhappiness until the person simply would not want to live anymore. The best way to test this hypothesis would be through the interviewing of lottery players and lottery winners focusing particularly on those who come from a low-economic background and comparing them to middle-class players.…
In Ashley Gilbertson’s “The Life and Lonely Death of Noah Pierce,” Ira R. Kats states that around “550 and 650 veterans are committing suicide each month” (qtd. in Gilbertson). This is surely due to the tasks carried out by these veterans, which is eliminating enemy threats regardless of collateral damage which can include non-combatants such…
Not long ago, a young man, Dike, tried to commit suicide by taking “a whole bottle of Tylenol” (453) in the basement of his mother’s house. Although he is in recovery at the moment and is making strides to overcome his depression, his actions cause inquiry. Why is he depressed? Why was he suicidal? First off, depression is not an emotion that can be ignored; it is an illness that requires treatment.…
Durkheim analyzed the correlation between suicide and several variables such as marriage, education levels, and religious orientation. During his examination, he discovered how “suicide is not just an individual phenomenon arising from people’s personal troubles. It is also a social problem” (56). His research revealed how people are more likely to commit suicide when they feel alone and alienated from their communities. Suicide rates were higher in single people than married people, and people who were childless than people with children.…
Lastly, the government states that research shows combat veterans do not have a higher suicide rate, but in fact, “the results appeared to show something paradoxical: Those deployed to war were actually less likely to commit suicide. But critics of the studies say most people deployed in war zones do not face enemy fire. The risk for true combat veterans is hidden in the larger results, and has never been properly examined, they assert” (Philipps, 2015). With this in mind, it is hard to imagine a country who sends men into combat does not even know if it increases their propensity to commit…
Suicides occur across every segment of the force and Army leadership is committed to reversing the trend of increasing suicidal behavior. Tank Automotive and Armaments Command (TACOM) Life Cycle Material Command (LCMC) Suicide Awareness Response Center (SARC) ensures our Soldiers and Department of the Army (DA) Civilians are informed and educated on the risk factors and warning signs of suicide as well as how to provide assistance and/or intervention. TACOM LCMC SARC provides the resources needed to assist soldiers and DA Civilians with identifying warning signs of suicide. These resources include but not limited to a National suicide Prevention lifeline, Military Crisis Line, and Army Strong ACE Cards.…
When looking at the veteran suicide rate, it is estimated that 22 veterans commit suicide each day. Due to the Department of Defense losing track of some of its veterans as they retire, suicide statistics in veterans are most likely higher, as they are not kept track of equally throughout all branches (Veterans, 3). Drugs or alcohol are involved in one-third of Army suicides, the branch with the highest suicide rate at 23.8 percent (Braunschweiger, 3). One veteran describes their struggle with drug abuse and PTSD by saying, “They tell us not to do drugs, but how do I sleep? How do I forget what I saw?”…
The Effects of War on Veterans in Afghanistan and Iraq More than half of the 2.6 million Americans dispatched to fight the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq struggle with physical or mental health problems and often begin to feel disconnected from civilian life, deriving from deployment. As stated in the article “After the Wars: A legacy of pain and pride”, written by Rajiv Chandrasekaran and published by The Washington Post. The conditions of being deployed and serving for our country can conclude in widespread consequences within soldiers in which if no help is provided, could become permanently detrimental. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Military Sexual Trauma (MST), and an increase in suicides are some of…
“Not only am I better off dead, but the world is a better place without me in it.” These words are quoted from a suicide letter of Daniel Somers who battled with his Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder or (PTSD) until he could no longer cope. At a staggering rate, families of honorable veterans are reading words similar to this after it is too late. Suicide among veterans has become a recent epidemic, and the death toll has far surpassed the combat related deaths of the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars combined. As of April 9, 2015, 4,412 soldiers and 13 civilians have been killed in Operation Iraqi Freedom, and 2,351 soldiers along with four civilians have been killed in Operation Enduring Freedom for total 6780 combat related deaths since the beginning…
The excessive amounts of stress police officers undergo on a daily basis increase their risks to depression and suicide. According to Territo and Vetter, “One study concluded that available data indicate male police officers to be more likely to kill themselves than men in other occupations.” An experiment that studied occupational based factors their relationship with suicide concluded, “The combined impact of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and increased alcohol use led to a ten-fold increase risk for suicide ideation (Violanti 2011).” Suicide in families can be detrimental. Not only is the loss of a spouse emotionally unbearable, but also extremely stressful.…
Esteem support is very important in prevention suicide. With my experience, the army offers very little esteem support to new coming soldiers and is constantly insulting them. This example follows the functionalist perspective on suicide. Suicide is a very big issue in today’s society. Although there are several different perspectives as to what causes individuals to commit suicide, it needs to be stopped and taken more seriously by our…
Durkheim research on suicide found that although suicide was a solitary act the causes has significant links to various social factors. Durkheim looked for what socially would influence a higher or lower rate of suicide. He studied each country 's believes value tradition to see if these influence the rate of suicide. Durkheim looked at the cohesiveness of the society. A persons standing in the society and the religious social and occupational groups in the society.…