Suicide in Australian Children: An Examination of Characteristics and Impact on Parents

Abstract

While rare, suicide in children younger than 15 years is a leading cause of death globally. Childhood is presumed to be a time of happiness, with children often assumed incapable of suicide. Yet, most children understand the lethality and finality of suicidal acts by age eight. The significance of the current research lies in its focus on children. Literature has tended to focus on individuals aged 15+ years, and studies which do include children have predominately grouped children and adolescents together for analysis and discussion. No comprehensive studies on suicide in Australian children have been conducted so it is unknown what suicide risk factors are relevant. Suicide does not end with the suicidal act itself and individuals bereaved by suicide often experience a range of additional deleterious ramifications like guilt, blame, responsibility, rejection, and anger, intermingled with social responses such as social stigma and isolation. Few studies have examined the impact of a child suicide on bereaved parents, particularly the guilt, stigma, and responsibility associated with this type of death. Derived from an Australian Research Council (ARC) Linkage Project (LP0990918), the overall aim of this research program was to obtain a better understanding of the predictive factors between suicidal and non-suicidal children under the age of 15 years. An additional aim focused on the impact of the child’s suicide on parents and explores the differences and similarities in the grief experiences of parents bereaved by suicide compared to parents whose child died due to other external causes of death. In order to achieve this, the current research program involved three different, though complementary components, using both aggregate and individual-level data, employing both quantitative and qualitative methodology.