Citation

Oncu B, Soyka C, Ihan IO, Sayil I. Crisis 2008; 29(4): 173-179.

Affiliation

Ankara University Medical School, Psychiatry Department, Turkey. oncu@medicine.ankara.edu.tr

Copyright

(Copyright © 2008, International Association for Suicide Prevention, Publisher Hogrefe Publishing)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

19069609

Abstract

Since attitudes predict future behavior and are important in suicide prevention, we aimed to determine the attitudes of professional groups with potential importance in suicide and suicide prevention. A total sample of 205 medical students, general practitioners, secondary school guidance teachers, and police officers from Ankara completed the Attitudes Toward Suicide Scale (ATSS). Principal components analysis revealed a nine factor model for the scale. Participants from different professions held different attitudes toward suicide. Medical students and general practitioners had the most permissive attitudes. General practitioners' attitude scores about preparedness to prevent suicide were lower compared to other groups, which points out the importance of continuing medical education and implementation of suicide prevention programs in primary care.

Language: en