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Pathways to suicide attempts among male offenders: the role of agency
Author(s) -
Byng Richard,
Howerton Amanda,
Owens Christabel V.,
Campbell John
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
sociology of health and illness
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.146
H-Index - 97
eISSN - 1467-9566
pISSN - 0141-9889
DOI - 10.1111/1467-9566.12259
Subject(s) - agency (philosophy) , impulsivity , prison , psychology , unemployment , suicide prevention , mental illness , suicide attempt , poison control , psychiatry , social psychology , criminology , clinical psychology , developmental psychology , mental health , medicine , sociology , medical emergency , social science , economics , economic growth
Suicide is common among offenders, who are at increased risk of homelessness, unemployment and mental illness and are prone to impulsivity. Release from prison is a particularly vulnerable time. This qualitative study investigated the views of 35 offenders in South‐West England prior to and after release from prison, enquiring into their previous suicide attempts and how they saw their future. Semi‐structured interviews were analysed thematically, comparing individuals who had made one, more than one, and no suicide attempts. Multiple attempters were often in despair and enmeshed in substance misuse, with little control over their lives. Most of those with one‐off or no previous attempts portrayed themselves as having more mastery. One‐off attempters described using particularly violent means. The role of different types of agency in pathways to and from suicide is discussed. Iterational agency, the selective reactivation of past patterns of behaviour, appeared to dominate in individuals who were choosing between further suicide attempts and substance use. Projective agency, having a more future orientation, appeared more prominent in some single attempters and in those individuals with plans to escape crime and social exclusion.