|
|
Article: Suicide
- Article from:
- Gale Encyclopedia of Mental Disorders
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2003 The Gale Group Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
|
Suicide
Definition
Suicide is defined as the intentional taking of one's own life. In some European languages, the word for suicide translates into English as "self-murder " Until the end of the twentieth century, approximately, suicide was considered a criminal act; legal terminology used the Latin phrase
felo-de-se
, which means "a crime against the self." Much of the social
stigma
that is still associated with suicide derives from its former connection with legal judgment, as well as with religious condemnation.
In the social climate of 2002, suicidal behavior is most commonly regarded
—
and responded to
—
as a psychiatric emergency.
Demographics of suicide
In the ...