What is suicide-related stigma?
The following pages provide you with information and resources to help you better understand suicide-related stigma, its effects, and how to take action to address it.
Suicide-related stigma
What it is and how you can address it
Stigma and discrimination (enacted stigma) can have significant negative impacts on the lives of those affected and those close to them. Stigma is a social process that involves the negative labelling, stereotyping, and exclusion of individuals or groups due to perceptions that they deviate from social norms.
Discrimination, or enacted stigma, refers to treating someone unfairly because of those negative attitudes and beliefs (e.g., racism, homophobia, ableism, ageism). Discrimination may manifest itself as excluding someone from social opportunities, not giving someone a job, or treating them unfairly.
Suicide-related stigma involves the damaging labelling, stereotyping and exclusion of individuals affected by suicide.
It refers to the negative attitudes and beliefs attached to people who experience suicidal thoughts, people who have attempted suicide, people affected by suicide through their professional/personal lives (e.g., those caring for someone experiencing suicidal thoughts/behaviours), and people who have been bereaved by suicide.
There are four main types of suicide-related stigma:
Public stigma
Definition
Public stigma relates to the negative attitudes and beliefs held by members of society about those who die by suicide, those bereaved by suicide, those who experience suicidal thoughts, or those who have attempted suicide.
Example and impact
A post on social media describes people who talk about feeling suicidal as “attention seeking” and states that they should “get over it.”
As a result, people experiencing suicidal thoughts may feel judged, ashamed, or discouraged from seeking help.
Self-stigma
Definition
Self-stigma is the internalisation of public stigma (i.e. stigma people hold about themselves).
Example and impact
A person experiencing suicidal thoughts might think “I’m weak for feeling this way” or “I have no reason to feel this way” because of how they perceive or experience public stigma and discrimination.
As a result, they may choose to keep their experiences of suicide a secret in order to avoid stigma.
Anticipated/Perceived stigma
Definition
Anticipated/Perceived stigma is the fear of experiencing stigma from others.
Example and impact
A person may think, “If I tell anyone I’m having suicidal thoughts, they’ll judge me or think I’m dangerous.”
A person may also expect that people will not know how to react to someone experiencing suicidal thoughts/behaviours, and they may worry about making others feel uncomfortable.
Because they expect a negative reaction, they keep their feelings hidden and avoid seeking support.
Structural stigma
Definition
Structural stigma is created or reinforced by organisational and societal rules, policies, procedures, cultural norms and laws (although it is important to note that these can also address stigma).
Example and impact
Life insurance policies can exclude coverage for death by suicide, or individuals deemed "at risk" of suicide may be denied life insurance.
Life insurance policies often have a suicide exclusion clause which means that a death by suicide within a specific timeframe from the beginning of cover (e.g., 24 months) is not covered.
This highlights the discrimination faced by individuals who are at risk of suicide.
It is important to note that structural stigma influences all other types of suicide-related stigma. Therefore, implementing policies that address structural stigma could be most beneficial in tackling suicide-related stigma overall.
For example, policies that increase access to mental health services, that increase funding for suicide prevention activities, improve access to suicide prevention training and educational programmes, and policies that improve workplace culture can help to tackle stigma.
Intersectional stigma
Intersectional stigma refers to multiple forms of stigma (related to identities, health, and living conditions) which mutually shape the lived experiences and opportunities of groups who are marginalised.
These create distinct disadvantages, which cannot be understood in isolation from one another. Therefore, it is important to consider the likelihood that someone may be experiencing other forms of stigma alongside suicide-related stigma.
For example, people within the LGBTQ+ community are often stigmatised as a result of homophobia and heteronormativity (social assumption that heterosexuality is the norm), and this stigmatisation increases their risk of suicide and poor mental health.
Therefore, members of the LGBTQ+ community are likely to be experiencing multiple and overlapping stigma as a result of being a member of the LGBTQ+ community and experiencing suicidal thoughts or attempts.
You can find out more about suicide-related stigma by visiting these pages
