Citation

Lee E, Won Kim S, Enright RD. Crisis 2014; 36(1): 71-75.

Affiliation

Department of Educational Psychology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, WI, USA

Copyright

(Copyright © 2014, International Association for Suicide Prevention, Publisher Hogrefe Publishing)

DOI

10.1027/0227-5910/a000286

PMID

25410254

Abstract

BACKGROUND: South Korea is characterized by a high percentage of parent-child collective suicide. Aims: This case study explores one individual's personal experience as an adult survivor of suicide who lost his wife and his only son through parent-child collective suicide in South Korea.

METHOD: The study reports data from a semistructured interview, which were analyzed using interpretive phenomenological analysis (IPA).

RESULTS: Two themes were identified through the analysis of the narratives of the survivor. The first theme provides a detailed picture of the survivor's explanation of why the parent-child collective suicide occurred. The second theme examines how the participant experienced complicated bereavement after his heart-breaking loss of both wife and son.

CONCLUSION: We discuss the importance of support from other people or grief experts for the survivors of suicide who lose family to collective suicide.

Language: en