TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2014//
TI  - Investigating suicide as a career response
JO  - Career development international
A1  - Duff, A.J.
A1  - Chan, C.C.A.
SP  - 4
EP  - 26
VL  - 19
IS  - 1
N2  - PURPOSE: To empirically consider work and career as potential influences of suicide. <br><br>DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: In this qualitative study we conducted in-depth semi-structured interviews with 16 individuals who were survivors (i.e. family members or intimates) of individuals who had committed suicide. Data was analyzed using a grounded theory methodology. <br><br>FINDINGS: This exploratory study used purposive self-determination as the theoretical framework for analyzing their life histories. Factors of purposive self-determination, including lack of purpose, feeling controlled, experiencing failure, and social exclusion all figured prominently but differentially according to life-stage. Distinct work and career themes for early-career, mid-career and late-career suicides emerged. Early-career suicides were attributed to educational or work-related contexts, leading to a sense of hopelessness. Mid-career suicides emphasized despair based in failure. Finally, an attempt to escape from challenges associated with transitioning roles in retirements emerged as a key theme in late-career suicides. <br><br>ORIGINALITY/VALUE: Although suicide has been studied extensively from medical, psychopathological, sociological, anthropological, philosophical and religious perspectives, there is a dearth of research considering why certain individuals choose to end their own lives as a result of work and career related reasons. This study sought to contribute to our understanding of this under-researched phenomenon. Additionally, while extant careers theory and research has considered positive notions of career such as career success or careers as a calling, this work presents an alternate lens, the consideration of career failure and careers as a sentence. © Emerald Group Publishing Limited.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 1362-0436
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/CDI-04-2013-0040
ID  - ref1
ER  -