Books reconsidered: Emile Durkheim, Le Suicide.
OBJECTIVE
To reappraise Emile Durkheim's taxonomy of suicide in Le Suicide in the light of recent experience.


CONCLUSIONS
While Durkheim's scientific method and argument are fundamentally flawed, some of his concepts have instrumental value in attempting to understand the complex origins of suicidal behaviour. Durkheim's baseless dismissal of mental illness as a key determinant of suicidal behaviour weakens his thesis significantly. However, his conceptualization of anomic, egoistic and altruistic suicide provides a means of comprehending recent trends in suicidal behaviour in the former Soviet states and a possible window into the psyche of the suicides of religious and political extremists.
Robertson
Michael
M
Psychiatrist and Clinical Lecturer, Discipline of Psychological Medicine, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia. mrobertson@med.usyd.edu.au
D000533:Altruism; D000850:Anomie; D001877:Books; D004532:Ego; D005602:France; D049672:History, 19th Century; D006801:Humans; D012307:Risk Factors; D012931:Social Environment; D013405:Suicide / Q000266:history / Q000523:psychology; D000092864:Suicide Prevention