Factors Explaining Suicide Rates

4. OTHER SOCIAL FACTORS EXPLAINING SUICIDE RATE

Social integration is not the only factor that explains the suicide rates in society. This essay herein aims at explaining alcoholism and drug abuse, genetics, regulation, illness and social inequality as other factors that are capable of explaining the suicide rates in society.

Firstly alcoholism and drug abuse; involves those who develop alcohol dependence or abuse, is said to be a psychiatric condition most strongly associated with suicide attempts. Experiments have shown that the consumption of drugs or alcohol produce an initial state of euphoria, followed within a few hours by anxiety, depression and suicide ideas.

Unbearable illness is also one of the factors explaining suicide rates. Considering a person suffering from HIV and AIDS; one of the world's deadly diseases, where one is assured of death as it has no cure, suicidal thoughts are prone to such individuals as it brings shame and also pain. This therefore gives the individual a choice of death, as they believe death is a comfort and resting zone.

Suicidal attempts are also believed to have biological and genetic roots; one is said to be able to inherit suicidal traits from the parents. For example alcoholism which has already been explained as one of the factors for suicide, is inheritable. In addition, an inability to control impulsive and violent and aggressive behavior can also lead to suicide, Feldman (2009).

Emile Durkheim also identifies regulation as one of the factors, apart from social integration, explaining suicide rates. Regulation as he defines, is the degree of external constraints on the individual, for example anomic suicide a major form of suicide discussed by Durkheim, which is more likely to occur when the regulative powers of society are disrupted. Such disruptions are likely to leave individuals dissatisfied because there is little control over their passion.