I keep my problems to myself : pathways to suicide attempts in Nicaraguan young men

• This qualitative study is an attempt to understand the pathways leading to attempted suicide of young men in León, Nicaragua. Our research is based on in-depth interviews with twelve young men between the ages of 15 and 24 who had recently attempted to take their own life. The analysis is based on a grounded theory approach. The young men who participated in this study had a broadly similar background, insofar as they all came from broken families and had dropped out from school at an early age. They also all faced similar problems, such as unemployment and alcohol abuse. On this basis a model describing the pathways leading to the suicide attempts was constructed based on the informants’ experiences. In all cases the decision to attempt suicide was found to be an expression of frustration with the present conditions of life. Combined with this was the traumatic influence of a troubled childhood within an unloving, unstable family. Attention has been paid to the ambivalent and antagonistic relationships that the informants experienced within their own families from childhood onwards, and the subsequent inability to establish any meaningful relationships in later life. This study aims to increase our understanding of the complexity of suicidal behaviours in order to help develop genderspecific prevention strategies.

Ämnesord

MEDICIN OCH HÄLSOVETENSKAP  -- Klinisk medicin -- Psykiatri (hsv//swe)

MEDICAL AND HEALTH SCIENCES  -- Clinical Medicine -- Psychiatry (hsv//eng)

Nyckelord

Young men

Suicide attempt

Nicaragua

Qualitative approach

Publikations- och innehållstyp

ref (ämneskategori)

art (ämneskategori)