Understanding Suicide A Sociological Autopsy

Sociologists have debated suicide since the early days of the discipline. This book assesses that body of work and breaks new ground through a qualitatively-driven, mixed method 'sociological autopsy' of one hundred suicides that explores what can be known about suicidal lives.

Ben Fincham is Lecturer in Sociology at the University of Sussex, UK, and part of the Gender and Inequality Research Croup at Sussex. Susanne Langer is Senior Research Fellow at the Department of Mental Health and Well-Being, University of Liverpool, UK. Jonathan Scourfield is Professor of Social Work at Cardiff University School of Social Sciences, UK. Michael Shiner is Senior Lecturer in the Social Policy Department and Assistant Director of the Mannheim Centre for Criminology at the London School of Economics, UK.

List of Tables and Figures
Acknowledgements
Introduction
The Sociology of Suicide – A Critical Appreciation
What is a Sociological Autopsy?
Suicide Case Files as Sites of Identity Creation
Suicide Notes as Social Documents
Repertoires of Action
When Things Fall Apart – Suicide and the Life-Course
Lessons for Prevention
Bibliography
Index