A suicide prevention program for Hopi youth

Abstract

In recent years, Hopi Indians have been concerned about what they believe are rising suicide rates especially among teenagers and young adults. A review of 30 years of Hopi suicides reveals that: (a) although it is possible that rates are rising, it is more likely that they are relatively stable; (b) high age specific rates for those between 15 and 34 years of age is not a recent phenomenon; (c) the individuals at risk for suicide and for alcohol abuse are the children of parents who made traditionally disapproved marriages, i.e. intertribal, intermesa, and between clans of disparate social status. By labeling the parents as deviant the community creates ‘primary’ deviance in the second generation. To be successful, a suicide program must not be designed specifically for troubled adolescents. Nor can it identify the problem as caused by either acculturation or traditional culture. The proposed program and constraints placed upon its implementation are discussed.