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Abstract
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There are large differences in the rates and patterns of suicide across cultures. For example, it is well-documented that suicidal behavior varies by country and by regions within a country (Lester, 1994b, 1996), but a definition of multicultural is - relating to or constituting several cultural or ethnic groups within a society. Given this definition, what is most noteworthy is that some cultural and ethnic groups are well-studied by researchers (often with the aid of governments), while other groups are neglected.
For example, there has been research on suicidal behavior in two aboriginal groups in Taiwan, the Atayal and the Ami (e.g., Cheng, 1995), but none on the Ainu in Japan. There has been research for over 120 years on suicidal behavior in Protestants versus Catholics, but none on suicidal behavior in Sunni Muslims versus Shi-ite Muslims (and other Islamic groups). Often, societal prejudice plays a role in this. The Roma in Europe are a stigmatized group, often harassed by local and national governments, and there are only occasional observations about suicidal behavior in this group (Lester, 2015).
There is also stigma associated with suicide which prevents study. For example, in the 1990s, the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis (USA) noted in their first exhibit that slaves sometimes died by suicide, but no mention of this appears in 2020. The same may be true for discussion of suicide in the concentration camps in Germany and occupied territories during World War Two, where even survivors said that suicide was rare (for example, Primo Levi). In contrast, Lester (2005) found reports that, at one unit in Treblinka where 1,000 prisoners were housed, every morning at least one prisoner was found dead by hanging (a rate, therefore, of 36,500 per 100,000 per year).
Lester (2014) has written about suicidal behavior in many oppressed groups, but this essay will focus on groups for which there is adequate research and data and draw attention to some of the issues in multicultural research.
Language: en |