The applicability of Emile Durkheim's theory of anomic suicide to the Namibian adolescent population

Abstract

Abstract provided by author:

The study was conducted with 550 Namibian schoolgoing adolescents between the ages of 16 and 24 as sample. The sample was drawn from schools listed with the Ministry of Basic Education and Culture, in the various regions of the country. Two thirds of the sample was taken from the northern regions since police statistics seem to indicate that the incidence of suicide is higher in the North than in the central and southern regions of Namibia. No specific gender ratio was sought as the questionnaire was administered to all the students in the particular grade 12 classes selected

The method used for obtaining data was a questionnaire specifically designed for this study. It consisted of short questions in grouped in four domains, namely family environment [including employment and religion], social environment [including school], attitudes to suicide and self perception. The questionnaire was in English for all respondents as the medium of instruction in Namibian schools is English. Where potentially difficult words were used, these were explained in context. The procedure for administering the questionnaire was the same for all respondents. The instrument was administered during school time, usually during a guidance lesson. The purpose of the study was explained to the respondents as well as what was expected from them in answering the questions

The findings indicate that many more adolescents than initially anticipated attempt suicide. The findings confirm Durkheim's theory on anomic suicide as well as findings of other studies which identify depression as a major stressor in suicide. The findings further confirm the hypotheses that: 1. Feelings of alienation, uneasiness, powerlessness and depression brought on by changes within the society with which the individual cannot cope, can lead to suicide or the contemplation thereof. 2. That violence experienced by young people could be a stressor in the contemplation of suicide

This study cannot, however, confirm Durkheim' s theory as well as findings in other studies, that females attempt suicide more often than males. In this study, male attempters were in the majority

The first step in data analysis was to compute statistics for each section. Since there was no control group, the researcher did not seek to compare group means or standard deviations. The goal was rather to see if the sample mean could be used as a point of reference for the larger population. For this reason the statistical test used was the t -test for a single mean