Depression at the end of life is a common mental health issue with serious implications for quality of life and decision making. This study investigated the reliability and validity of one of the most frequently used measures of depression, the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D) in 422 patients with terminal cancer admitted to a palliative…

To see if suicide attitudes might be softened by extenuating circumstances, such as terminal illness, African American and European American women imagined themselves in one of four extenuating circumstances then completed measures of suicide acceptability and religiosity. Both ethnic groups reported a greater likelihood of suicide when imagining…

Examined how circumstances of a suicide victim's life may influence people's responses in college students (n=180) who read a fictitious newspaper article about a man who committed suicide following psychological pain, physical pain, or terminal illness. Results indicated that subjects were intolerant of suicide when the victim was suffering from…

The pragmatic question of assessing a client's situation with regard to rational suicide is raised. A review of the nine criteria for a diagnosis of clinical depression is suggested as a good way to explore the possibility of clinical depression in a terminally ill person who is considering suicide. (Author/EMK)

College students (N=780) read 1 of 12 scenarios of person who decided to commit suicide. Scenarios varied by age of victim (45 versus 70), gender, and illness (chronic depression, chronic physical pain, terminal bone cancer). Suicide evaluations tended to be significantly more favorable when evaluators were male, victims were male, victims were…

College students (n=228) completed a suicide ideation questionnaire and read one of 4 scenarios: cancer, AIDS, schizophrenia, and depression. People in the cancer and AIDS scenario were viewed as the most justified in committing suicide. Suicide ideators saw the people in the scenarios as justified in committing suicide more often than did…

This study was conducted to investigate attitudes that people hold about a hypothetical suicide victim in different situations. These situations depicted the victim in a scenario as either having cancer, Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS), schizophrenia, or a depressive disorder. An analysis was made to discern whether there were…

Notes that people over age 60 have highest suicide rates and comprise one-fourth of all suicides. Presents case study illustrating risk assessment and intervention with elderly woman. Examines clinical issues related to recognition of suicidal elderly patients and presents practical approach to early detection, evaluation, and management of…