EXPERIENCES AND COPING MECHANISMS OF SUICIDE ATTEMPTERS AND THEIR FAMILIES IN GHANA: A MIXED METHOD APPROACH.

Abstract

To understand the experiences and coping mechanisms of suicide attempters and their families in Ghana, 20 (10 attempters and 10 family members) persons were sampled in the aftermath of suicide attempts at the Psychiatry Department of the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital. The convergent parallel design was used and participants were interviewed on their experiences and coping mechanisms after the suicide attempt. For the quantitative section, participants were administered the africultural coping inventory and DASS scales and independent t test were used to analyze the data. The major coping mechanism was cognitive/debriefing coping followed by spiritual coping, however supportive network was generally weak and depression was high for suicide attempters. As regards the qualitative section, Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis was used to analyze the data. Findings showed that the precipitants for suicide were largely interpersonal. Further attitudes towards suicidality were a mixture of condemnation and support. Finally, suicide survivors largely utilized spirituality in surviving the stress of the crisis following suicide. In conclusion the experiences of attempters and their families during suicidal crisis present a potential risks for completion. Suicidality thus continues to be influenced by cultural dynamics. Sociocultural theory, africultural coping theory and learned helplessness are used to explain some of the findings of this study. Implications for suicide prevention and clinical practice are also addressed.