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Devi Ahiya Vishwavidyalaya

Durkheim proposed four types of suicide in his 1897 book based on social factors: egoistic suicide results from weak social integration; altruistic suicide involves sacrificing oneself for a group/cause; anomic suicide occurs during times of social change/instability; and fatalistic suicide involves excessive regulations that restrict individuality. Durkheim argued that suicide rates indicate a society's level of organization and that social, not individual or psychological factors, cause suicide. While influential, his theory was criticized for being one-sided by neglecting other potential causes of suicide like psychological or economic factors.

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106 views16 pages

Devi Ahiya Vishwavidyalaya

Durkheim proposed four types of suicide in his 1897 book based on social factors: egoistic suicide results from weak social integration; altruistic suicide involves sacrificing oneself for a group/cause; anomic suicide occurs during times of social change/instability; and fatalistic suicide involves excessive regulations that restrict individuality. Durkheim argued that suicide rates indicate a society's level of organization and that social, not individual or psychological factors, cause suicide. While influential, his theory was criticized for being one-sided by neglecting other potential causes of suicide like psychological or economic factors.

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JayeshAgrawal
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DEVI AHIYA VISHWAVIDYALAYA

SCHOOL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES

COURSE – MA SOCIOLOGY(2 SEM)


SUBJECT – CLASSICAL SOCIOLOGICAL
TRADITION-II
SUBMITTED TO- DR.PRITA ASATI
SUBMITTED BY- PRATIKSHA MISHRA
PROJECT ON-THEORY OF SUICIDE
BY-EMILE DHURKHEIM
THEORY OF SUICIDE

• Definition:
• According to Durkheim The term suicide is
applied to all cases of death resulting directly
or indirectly from a positive or negative act of
the victim himself. Which he knows will
produce this result.
INTRODUCTION
• Durkheim’s book suicide was published in
1897. His book is an analysis of a phenomenon
regarded as pathological intended to throw
light on the evil which threatens modern
industrial societies that is anomie. Suicide is an
indication of disorganization of both individual
and society. Increasing number of suicides
clearly indicates something wrong somewhere
in the social system of the concerned society.
• According to Durkheim, suicide refers to every
case of death resulting directly or indirectly
from a positive or negative death profound by
the victim himself and which strives to
produce this result.
• Durkheim was interested in explaining
difference in suicide rates that is, he was
interested in why one group had a higher rate
of suicide than other.
• Durkheim tended to assume that social
psychological, biological factors remain
essentially constant from one group to
another or from one time period to another.
He began suicide with a series of alternative
ideas about the causes of suicide. Among
these are individual psychological, race,
heredity and climate.
TYPES OF SUICIDE
Egoistic suicide 
• Egoistic suicide is a product of relative weak group
integration. It takes place as a result of extreme
loneliness and also out of excess individualism.
When men become ‘detached from society’ and
when the bonds that previously had tied them to
their fellow beings become loose they are more
prone to egoistic suicide. Durkheim's belief that
lack of integration of the individual into the social
group is the main cause for egoistic suicide.
• According to him egoistic suicide are committed by
those individual who have the tendency to shut
themselves up within themselves , such individual
feel affronted, hurt and ignored.
• Introverting traits gain upper hand in them egoistic
person are aloof and cut off from the mainstream of
society and don't take full interest in social matters
such persons get alienated and find it difficult to take
cope with social alienation and feel impelled to
commit suicide.
 Altruistic suicide
• This kind of suicide takes place in the form of
sacrifice in which an individual ends his life by
heroic mean so as to promote a cause or an
ideal which is very dear to him.
• It results from the over integration of the
individual into his group. In simple words
altruistic is taking off one’s own life for the
sake of a cause. It means that even high level
of social solidarity induces suicide.
• Example-
I-Soldiers who volunteer for a dangerous mission,
in which they are likely to lose their lives, out of
zeal for and devotion to their country.
II-The practices of sati which was once in practices
in north India is another example of this kind.
Wherever altruistic suicide is prevalent, man is
always ready to sacrifice his life for a great cause,
principle, ideal or value.
Anomic suicide
• This type of suicide is concerned with social
disorganization and imbalance. At the time when social
relation get disturbed both social ethics become the
causalities, values of life come down and outlook of some
persons changes radically.
• There are then certain dangerous development in society.
If the change is sudden, adjustment becomes difficult and
those who don’t get adjusted to changes commit suicide.
Acc. To Durkheim . Not only economic disaster and
industrial crisis but even sudden economic prosperity can
causes disruption and deregulation and finally suicide.
Fatalistic suicide
• one of four types of suicide proposed in 1897 by
Émile Durkheim, involving excessive social regulations that
restrict individuation. Feeling controlled by the values and
norms of society, the person becomes hopeless and
despairs of ever escaping these oppressive external forces.
• Durkheim associated fatalistic suicide with preindustrial
social orders, citing suicides of slaves and of older childless
married women as examples, and believed it to be of little
contemporary relevance. Indeed, fatalistic suicide often is
omitted from modern discussions of Durkheim’s typology
SOCIAL FACTORS RESPONSIBLE FOR SUICIDE

• Suicide is not a result of geographical, hereditary or others


factors. It is a social fact which results from the social
phenomenon.
• The balance of happiness caused by lack of resources
responsible for happiness makes a man unhappy and needs
for suicide are there by sown. Once there is a lack of social
integration or social solidarity, the element of suicide begins,
• All the activities are goal oriented and once the goal is not
achieved frustration is caused. The negative pressure is
responsible for unhappiness of man which impels him to
resort to self destruction or suicide.
EVALUATION OF DURKHIEM THEORY OF
SUICIDE COMMENTS IN APPRECIATION

• I) L.A Coser- could be cited as a monumental landmark


study in which conceptual theory and empirical
research are brought together in an imposing manner.
• II) Abraham and Morgan- have said ‘the larger
significance of suicide lies in its demonstration of
function of sociological theory in empirical science.
• III) A successful attempt is made in this theory to
establish logically the link between social solidarity
social control and suicide.
CRITICAL COMMENTS
• I) Durheim has given importance only to social
factors in suicide. In doing so he has neglected the
role of other factor especially the psychological.
Hence this is one-sided show.
• II) The theory is based upon a very small sample of
data concerning suicide.
• III) As criminologists have pointed out- economic,
psychological and even religious factors may lead to
suicide. But Durheim did not give any importance to
these factors.
REFERENCES
•  W. S. F. Pickering; Geoffrey Walford; British
Centre for Durkheimian Studies (2000).
• ^ Harriford, Diane Sue; Thomson, Becky W.
(2008). When the Center is on Fire :
• Thompson, Kenneth (1982). Emile Durkheim.
London: Tavistock Publications. pp. 
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suicide_(Durkhe
im_book)

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