Influence of Spiritual Dimensions on Suicide Risk: The Role of Regional Differences

The Prohibition of Suicide and Its Theological Rationale in Catholic Moral and Canonical Tradition: Origins and Development

This paper analyzes the nuances of the Roman Catholic Church's opposition to suicide. First, we analyze biblical suicide cases, showing that these were not usually met with clear condemnation. Next, we show the development of the Roman Catholic Church's moral teachings, with special attention to Augustine. The canon law of the Middle Ages still made some distinctions regarding motivation, but at this point, Roman Catholic funerals started to be refused to those having committed suicide as discouragement to others. This was maintained by the Council of Trent. In the twentieth century, the Roman Catholic Church followed modern psychiatry in attributing suicide to mental illness, and the ban on Roman Catholic funerals was lifted. Currently, the Roman Catholic Church tries to discourage suicide while accompanying people in need.

Risk of suicide and religious or spiritual beliefs in Brazilian adult patients with epilepsy

In epilepsy, suicidal behavior is higher compared with the general population.

OBJECTIVE

To assess the relationship between suicide risk, religiosity or spirituality, and clinical variables in adult patients with epilepsy (PWE).

METHODOLOGY

The data from the suicide module of the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI) were related to scores on the Brief Multidimensional Measure of Religiousness/Spirituality (BMMRS-P) and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), as well as clinical variables in 96 adults PWE, with a significance level of p < 0.05.

RESULTS

The study included 49 patients with temporal lobe epilepsy with hippocampal sclerosis (TLE-HS) and 47 cases of other epilepsies. The presence of suicide risk in the MINI was observed in 43 (44.7%) cases. Suicide risk was associated with an earlier age of epilepsy onset, higher seizure frequency, neurological abnormalities, and higher scores on the HADS-A and HADS-D scales. Suicide risk was low in 33 (76.7%) cases and moderate or high in 10 (23.2%) cases. Higher suicide risk was associated with higher education levels, focal structural epilepsy, use of ≥2 antiseizure medications, neurological abnormalities, anxiety, and dimensions such as daily spiritual experiences, religious or spiritual coping, organizational religiousness, and total score in the BMMRS-P.

DISCUSSION

A high number of patients with epilepsy exhibited suicide risk, with epilepsy-related variables, the presence of anxiety, and perceived lower belongingness and social support from religiosity or spirituality anxiety being associated with a higher risk. The social support provided by religiosity/spirituality may be a non-clinical factor associated with suicidal behavior. Suicide in epilepsy is associated with a complex interaction of multidimensional factors.

Reporting Ethical Procedures in Suicide Prevention Research: Current Status and Recommendations

OBJECTIVE

Ethical concerns frequently arise in suicide prevention research regarding participant safety and confidentiality. Despite a substantial literature on managing and navigating ethical concerns in suicide research, little attention has been paid to the reporting of ethical procedures. Furthermore, standard procedures for reporting ethical risk management procedures have not been developed.

METHOD

A review of the current literature was performed to examine the current state of reporting of ethical procedures within suicide research. Articles published in 2020 (N = 263) from three suicide-focused publications were screened and then coded (n = 131) to identify reporting of procedures for the ethical conduct of research and suicide risk management steps taken by the research teams.

RESULTS

The majority of articles reported ethical review or approval (84.7%) and reported the use of an informed consent process (77.9%). Only 28.2% included risk mitigation procedures. Of those 29.7% of those articles reported conducting risk evaluation, 66.7% reported resource dissemination, and 51.4% reported an intervention.

CONCLUSION

As empirical support for brief interventions accrues, suicide prevention researchers should consider establishing standards for the reporting of procedures to ensure the safety of participants with suicidal risk.HighlightsReporting suicide safety protocols helps ensure high ethical standards in research.Fewer than 1/3 of articles reviewed reported risk mitigation procedures in 2020.Standard procedures for reporting safety protocols in suicide research are needed.

Religion and Suicide among Chinese Rural Youths

In this research we used data collected with psychological autopsy method to compare 392 suicides with 416 living controls among adolescents and young adults in rural China. Informants were asked whether the subjects in the study believed in a religion (and which religion) and whether they believed in a life after death. For the suicides, 7.8% believed in a religion compared to 5.8% of the living controls. For the suicides, 11.2% believed in a life after death compared to 8.4% of the controls. Suicide was predicted by the presence of a mental illness, a history of suicide in the family, poor social support, low status (power) in the family, and less education. Belief in a life after death did not contribute to the prediction of suicide in men or in women, but belief in a religion did predict suicide for the men. The relatively uncommon belief in a religion meant that the impact of Christianity versus Buddhism is less likely to be studied. Suggestions were made for future research.

Religiosity and Suicide: A Large-Scale International and Individual Analysis Considering the Effects of Different Religious Beliefs

In a cohort of 82,898 participants from 60 countries, this study examined attitudes towards suicide among five religions (Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, and other non-specific religions), while simultaneously considering two different dimensions of religiosity: subjective religiosity and religious practices. At the national level, religiosity was an important negative predictor variable for suicide rates and an important positive predictor variable for negative attitudes towards suicide. At the individual level, however, attitudes towards suicide were found to vary significantly across the different religions. The findings emphasize the importance of considering religion perspectives and religiosity, along with its practices and subjective dimensions, in prevention and attention programmes to suicidal behaviour.