Citation

Andriessen K. Suicide Life Threat. Behav. 2006; 36(5): 533-538.

Affiliation

Suicide Prevention Project of the Flemish Mental Health Centres in Belgium.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2006, American Association of Suicidology, Publisher John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1521/suli.2006.36.5.533

PMID

17087632

Abstract

The need for a comprehensive nomenclature in suicidology is now well recognized. In this paper the focus is on the issue of intention, which is identified as an essential aspect of any definition of suicide and suicidal behavior primarily because of its distinction from accidental behavior. The distinction between the retrospective perspective of motives versus the prospective perspective of intentions is highlighted, and I argue that the latter is more closely related to suicidal behavior. Finally, while motives and intentions tend to be used together in research, there is a need for sound research to clarify the roles of intentions in order to better understand suicide and attempted suicide.

Language: en