Premium
ATTEMPTED SUICIDE IN SCHOOLCHILDREN
Author(s) -
Connell Helen M.
Publication year - 1972
Publication title -
medical journal of australia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.904
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1326-5377
pISSN - 0025-729X
DOI - 10.5694/j.1326-5377.1972.tb47011.x
Subject(s) - hostility , aggression , decompensation , psychology , psychiatry , suicide prevention , poison control , injury prevention , medicine , medical emergency , developmental psychology , clinical psychology , psychoanalysis
It is probable that suicidal behaviour in schoolchildren is more common than is generally believed. Fifteen school‐age children admitted to hospital after a serious attempt at suicide were studied in order to determine the precursors of this type of behaviour, and hence make recognition easier. Typical features of the group were unsatisfactory relationships with parent figures, unstable homes with an excess of physical violence, and inability to express overt aggression in an atmosphere of family hostility. Increasing emotional decompensation shown by a depressive symptomatology (often unnoticed by adults) terminated in some quite trivial event which precipitated the suicide. Fourteen children took overdoses of drugs, barbiturates being involved in 13 out of the 14. Prevention involves warning parents of the danger of leaving drugs freely accessible to the impulsive child, and detection of the child at risk.