ATTITUDES OF CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGISTS, PSYCHIATRISTS, AND ONCOLOGISTS TOWARD SUICIDE

Randomly selected clinical psychologists, psychiatrists, and oncologists were mailed a questionnaire assessing attitudes toward suicide and the personal, professional, and societal values which underlie these attitudes. Suicides in the face of physical illness were judged to be significantly more acceptable than suicides committed in response to chronic psychiatric illness. Psychologists were most accepting, and oncologists least accepting, of suicide in response to chronic pain. There were no significant differences in the acceptability of suicide between those professionals who had experienced suicidal ideation themselves and those who had not.