Worldwide, there is a pressing need to improve responses to suicide and to reduce deaths and injuries caused by suicidal behaviour.
Our research focuses on addressing suicide as a global public health issue by exploring how social justice and structural inequalities contribute to vulnerability.
For more than two centuries, the dominant way of framing suicidality has been as an individual mental health problem, and this has shaped how suicide is conceptualised in policy and responded to in practice.
There is a pressing need to develop interventions to prevent suicide at a societal level. Our research is timely and important as it aligns with national and international research priorities, and strongly reflects current social, political and economic conditions.
Suicide is an urgent global public health concern, with more than 700,000 people dying by suicide worldwide every year (WHO, 2021).
In England, between 5,000-6,000 people die by suicide every year (ONS recorded 5275 in 2022).
Death by suicide has a profound impact on society, affecting families and communities over generations. It is a critical risk factor for subsequent suicide.
A social justice approach to suicide.
The World Health Organisation has identified suicide as a public health issue and suicide prevention as a social justice issue is now recognised across the world, including the UK, US, India, China, Africa, and Australia.
Social justice and inequality have been identified as crucial future directions for suicide research. We know that suicide often occurs when people are disproportionately affected by societal conditions, including inequities, discrimination, oppression and historical trauma. This is reflected in the research priorities of major organisations in the US for example the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention and the UK government's National Suicide Prevention Strategy for England (2023).
The UK strategy highlights for the first time, a significant rise in the association between domestic abuse, alcohol and debt/cost of living crisis and suicide.
Strategic research to reduce suicide risk.
Our approach to suicide prevention analyses the contexts of suicide, addressing societal power imbalances and resource disparities that contribute to its prevalence.
By framing suicide through the lens of inequity and social justice, our Postgraduate research cluster will contribute much-needed, timely new insights and approaches to the issue of suicide and suicide prevention.
We have designed four interdisciplinary research projects focusing on suicide in relation to homelessness, domestic abuse, addiction and media. These projects are located within the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health Research and supported by Social and Psychological Research in Long-Term Conditions (SPARC).
Our interdisciplinary research aligns with key strategic priorities and we are developing new interventions that reduce suicide risk across society.