CONTENTS

About This Course

Table of Contents

1. The Nature and Scope of Suicide
2. Recognizing the Progressive Development of Suicide
3. Substance Abuse as a Major Contributor to Suicide
4. Suicide Across the Life Span
5. Special Populations and Suicide Risk
6. Prevention and Early Intervention for Suicide and Substance Abuse Problems

Supplements
References
Resources

Holding the Lifeline
A Guide to Suicide Prevention

Cultural Understanding

Some ethnic and racial minorities and other special populations have higher risk of suicide. As with other populations, substance abuse increases the risk of suicidal behaviors.

Racial and ethnic minorities are increasing in the United States. U.S. Census Bureau data shows that the nonwhite population will exceed 50 percent of the overall U.S. population by the year 2050. This trend reinforces the need for public health interventions that are tailored to the needs of special populations.

Reducing people to their dominant ethnic or racial group (or other categories) alone can be limiting. For one thing, the process of acculturation may impact or even displace the norms, behaviors, and beliefs of an individual's cultural base. People assimilate by varying degrees into the dominant culture of the United States over generations. Being from a minority population also does not mean that a person is uncomfortable with the "majority culture" (which is already in a state of constant flux as cultural influences are felt among various sectors of society).

Prevention efforts must also take into account the role of poverty, language, and experiences that make it difficult to generalize within ethnic or religious categories. ref

Populations may be more at risk of suicide and substance abuse based on occupation (Veterans), sexual orientation (Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender - GLBT), and/or life situation (suicide survivor, people impacted by abuse and/or trauma, women with postpartum depression, and the severely and persistently mentally ill [SPMI]). These groups and population categories are not mutually exclusive. Many people are in more than one of these groups.

Each of these groups has its own set of complexities, which are beyond the scope of this course.