Factors contributing suicide in India
| Date | 17 February 2023 |
| Pages | 505-509 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/MHSI-01-2023-0011 |
| Published date | 17 February 2023 |
| Subject Matter | Health & social care,Mental health,Social inclusion |
| Author | Avanish Bhai Patel |
Factors contributing suicide in India
Avanish Bhai Patel
Abstract
Purpose –The death of a person caused by suicide is a matter of grave concern in contemporary
society. Today, a numberof people in society are taking their own lives becauseof many reasons. This
study aimsto examine the causes of suicide in Indian society using anomietheory.
Design/methodology/approach –The author has appliedthe content analysis method. The researcher
has collated210 occurrences of suicide from newspapers of Uttar Pradeshbetween 1 October 2020 and
30 April 2021.The author has recognised the type, patterns andcauses of suicide in society by analysing
and observingdaily news items.
Findings –The resultdemonstrates that most suicides (16.67%)have been caused by frustration/mental
illness, followed by several other causes of suicide such as family problems (13.81%), love affairs
(10.00%),poverty (9.05%), harassment (8.57%)and sexual harassment (7.62%). Thedata shows a major
gap in the numberof suicidedeaths between the genders.
Originality/value –This is an originalwork of researcher which is basically based on anomie theory.
Keywords India, Suicide, Anomie theory
Paper type Viewpoint
Introduction
Each death by suicide is a private tragedy that takes the life of an individual much too soon
and has a continuous ripple effect, impacting the lives of families, friends and communities
[National Crime Record Bureau (NCRB), 2020]. NCRB (2020) has reported in its annual
report on suicide in the country that India has recorded 153,052 cases of suicide which
reports around 418 cases of suicide daily in India. NCRB (2020) has indicated that the
suicide rate per lakh population has also increased from 10.4% in 2019 to 11.3% in 2020.
Moreover, NCRB (2020) has found that most suicide cases (19,909) have been reported in
Maharashtra which is followed by 16,883in Tamil Nadu, 14,578 in Madhya Pradesh, 13,103
in West Bengal and 12,259 in Karnataka. According to NCRB (2020), abuse, alcohol
addiction, chronic diseases, family issues, feelings of loneliness, financial loss, mental
illnesses, professional issuesand other factors all contribute to suicide. This paper attempts
to analyse the determinants of suicide from the anomie theory. It accesses the causes of
suicide in India and aims to understand the subjective meaning behind the social fact of
suicide.
Anomie theory and suicide
The anomie theory is related to the normlessness situationof society (Durkheim, 1951). This
situation arises during drastic and rapid changes in the social, economic or political
structure of society (Durkheim, 1951;Crossman,2020a, 2020b). The anomie theory
describes the social relationship between an individual, family members, neighbours and
society in a particular social setting. This theory also analyses how behavioural changes
and social changes influence the way of life and well-being of an individual in a particular
social setting due to changing socialcircumstances. An individual shapes his expectations,
interests and performances accordingly changing social circumstances of society in which
Avanish Bhai Patel is based
at Amity Institute of Social
Sciences, Amity University,
Noida, India.
DOI 10.1108/MHSI-01-2023-0011 VOL. 28 NO. 5 2024, pp. 505-509, ©Emerald Publishing Limited, ISSN 2042-8308 jMENTAL HEALTH AND SOCIAL INCLUSION jPAGE 505
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