- Title
- A sociological autopsy lens on older adult suicide in rural Australia: addressing health, psychosocial factors and care practices at the intersection of policies and institutions
- Creator
- Fitzpatrick, Scott J.; Read, Donna; Brew, Bronwyn K.; Perkins, David
- Relation
- Social Science & Medicine Vol. 284, Issue September 2021, no. 114196
- Publisher Link
- http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2021.114196
- Publisher
- Elsevier
- Resource Type
- journal article
- Date
- 2021
- Description
- This paper examines the interrelationship between suicide, health, socioeconomic, and psychosocial factors in contributing to suicide in older adults in rural Australia. Drawing on a coronial dataset of suicide cases and a mixed methods sociological autopsy approach, our study integrated a quantitative analysis of 792 suicide cases with a qualitative analysis of medico-legal reports from 30 cases. The sociological autopsy provided novel insights into the entanglement of policy and service provision at the state-level with individual end-of-life decisions. Particular attention is drawn to age and gendered dimensions of suicide, especially in relation to health and social issues. The study showed a continuity between suicide and the patterning of an individual's life course, including experiences and consequences of inequality and marginality; a desire to meet culturally-normative ideals of autonomy; and a fragmented, under-funded, and intimidating social care system that offered limited options.
- Subject
- suicide; older adults; sociological autopsy; rural; end of life; Australia; SDG 3; Sustainable Development Goals
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/1959.13/1446923
- Identifier
- uon:43010
- Identifier
- ISSN:0277-9536
- Language
- eng
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