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Community leaders' attitudes towards and perceptions of suicide and suicide prevention in Ghana

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journal contribution
posted on 2023-08-30, 16:22 authored by Joseph Osafo, Charity S. Akotia, Emmanuel Nii-Boye Quarshie, Johnny Andoh-Arthur, Kofi E. Boakye
Community leaders can play an important role in suicide prevention because they are potential gatekeepers in resource-poor settings. To investigate their attitudes towards suicide and the role they play when people are in suicidal crisis, 10 community leaders were interviewed in a rural community in Ghana. Thematic Analysis of the interviews showed that leaders held two conflicting views about suicide: health crisis and moral taboo. They also viewed the reasons for suicide as psychosocial strains more than psychiatric factors. Though they viewed suicide as a moral taboo, they maintained a more neutral position in their gatekeeping role: providing support for persons in suicidal crisis more often than exerting a condemnatory attitude. Implications for gatekeeper training are discussed.

History

Refereed

  • Yes

Volume

56

Issue number

3

Page range

529-551

Publication title

Transcultural Psychiatry

ISSN

1363-4615

Publisher

SAGE

File version

  • Accepted version

Language

  • eng

Legacy posted date

2019-06-25

Legacy creation date

2019-06-25

Legacy Faculty/School/Department

Faculty of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences

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