Degree Name
MA (Master of Arts)
Program
Sociology
Date of Award
5-2020
Committee Chair or Co-Chairs
Martha Copp, Candace Bright
Committee Members
Jon Ellis
Abstract
This study focuses on the quality of life of suicide attempt survivors and the trajectories of their lives after their last attempt in the past two to ten years. Employing both a quantitative and qualitative approach but focusing largely on the qualitative data, I collected demographic data, gathered responses on an abbreviated Reasons for Living Inventory, and conducted open-ended phone interviews with 26 participants. The primary life course finding is that participants’ suicide attempts are often built on years of dealing with mental illness. The analysis also dispels many stereotypes associated with people who have attempted suicide. I explore patterns in participants’ reports of their experiences surrounding their attempt(s), the stigma they felt (largely internal), and how they tried to alleviate that stigma and speak openly about their experiences with suicide attempts and ideations.
Document Type
Thesis - unrestricted
Recommended Citation
Hoefer, Karen, "Quality of Life of Adults Who Have Attempted Suicide" (2020). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. Paper 3684. https://dc.etsu.edu/etd/3684
Copyright
Copyright by the authors.