Abstract
Incidences of suicide in Africa, especially among the youths, have been on the rise in recent years, culminating in moral panic, as well as social and public health concerns. In the continent, suicide has been identified as one of the three leading causes of death among those in the most economically productive age group. In spite of the unpredictability of suicide being an outcome of complex human processes, there is evidence that quite a number of factors lead people to engage in it. Therefore, in this chapter, a multifactorial and multidisciplinary approach will be deployed to discuss suicidal behaviour among African youths. This will be guided by an analysis of theories of suicide in fields of sociology, psychology, mental health and criminology. A renewed approach to addressing the problem of suicide among the youth on the continent by decriminalising suicidal behaviour is advocated, with other policy-oriented suggestions, preventive framework and control.
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Aborisade, R.A. (2021). Suicide, Suicidal Ideation and Behaviour among African Youths: A Psycho-Social and Criminological Analysis. In: Chan, H.C.(., Adjorlolo, S. (eds) Crime, Mental Health and the Criminal Justice System in Africa. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-71024-8_2
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