EMILE DURKHEIMS SUICIDE STUDY Flashcards
(24 cards)
What were Durkheims intentions?
in 1898 durkheim used official statistics to formulate a conclusion upon why individuals commit suicide
What did durkheim want to prove?
he wanted to prove that sociology was as good as the core sciences
Describe how durkheim accumulated his data
his primary method was through looking at official statistics, he analysed the stats in different countries and evaluated the trends
what was durkheims main finding?
his primary conclusion was that suicide rates are determined by how much individuals feel part of society
name durkheims 4 types of suicide
egoistic
anomic
altruistic
fatalistic
describe egoistic suicide
this is individual, self inflicted suicide by which the person feels a lack of attachment to other people
this is determined by the social structure
not enough integration
describe anomic suicide
this suicide is where societies norms become unclear or outdated (why bother in a society that has no rules)
this is determined by cultural factors
not enough regulation
describe altruistic suicide
where an individuals duty it to die for the good of the group
too much integration
describe fatalistic suicide
where society controls individuals completely
too much regulation
what are the 4 main influencing factors in suicide?
education
location
marital status
family status
what factors link with egoistic suicide (lack of attachment to society)
o Unmarried > Married
o No children > Children
o Protestants > Catholics/Jews
what factors link with anomic suicide (where society norms become outdated or unclear)
o Economic recession o Prosperity (changes in society)
describe Durkheims main conclusion
his main finding was that as a country becomes more industrialised, this has a direct correlation on the number of suicide deaths
social integration
an experience of belonging
moral regulation
rules (sometimes unwritten)
difference between modern and traditional societies?
in modern societies individualism is more important (causing more egoistic suicides)
whereas in traditional societies the group is more important (causing more altruistic suicides)
what was the positivists view on durkheims study?
not operationalised, they see his research as ambiguous and unclear in its hypothesis
what was the interpretivists view on durkhiems study?
the think the study lacks qualitative data, inconclusive based on just quantitative data
Atkinson’s view 1978
deems quantitative data invalid, stats are merely the result of coroners interpretation
Taylor’s view 1990
uses case studies instead to discover the underlying issues that cause suicide
Halbwachs view 1930
rural vs urban lives weren’t considered
Gibbs’ and Martin’s view 1964
views durkheims work as being ambiguous, scientific methods of measuring regulation + integration are invalid
J.D Douglas’s view 1967
coroners may have systematic bias for the deaths as a result of families opinion on victims level of social integration - denies possibility of suicide
Steve Taylor’s view 1929
thinks durkheims quantitative data is just as valid as the ‘quantitative’ data set out by researchers conclusions on victims motives
