Citation

Dundas I, Hjeltnes A, Schanche E, Stige SH. Death Stud. 2022; 46(2): 458-466.

Affiliation

Faculty of Psychology, Department of Clinical Psychology, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2022, Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1080/07481187.2020.1740831

PMID

32188354

Abstract

Does working with suicidal patients become easier with time? A representative national survey of 375 psychologists (72% women, Mean age 44 years) showed that years of experience (r = -.13, p = .01) and frequency of contact with suicidal patients (r = -.15, p = .004) correlated only weakly with perceived difficulty. Thematic analysis of respondents' descriptions of difficult suicide-related situations on an open survey-question yielded four themes: Unreachable patients, choosing between therapy and security, therapist's boundaries and empathy with death-wishes. We conclude that improved confidence in coping with suicidality may require specific training rather than simply years of work.

Language: en