interpretivism and suicide

interpretivists focus on suicides' meanings for those involved (the deceased, relatives, coroners etc)

douglas: interactionism and suicide

Douglas (1967) is interested in the meaning of suicide for the deceased and the way coroners label deaths. Douglas rejects Durkheim's use of suicide statistics.

He says that they are not social facts, but social constructs, based on coroners' interpretations of deaths and influenced by other actors eg. family members.

Douglas uses qualitative data: suicide notes, diaries, interviews with survivors and relatives to classify suicides according to their meaning for the deceased. He believes this will give us a better picture of the real rate of suicide than official statistics.

atkinson: ethnomethodology and suicide

Atkinson (1978) argues that social reality is simply a construct of its members. He says that statistics…