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Silent Pain and Public Policy
Suicide and Social Welfare in the Middle East and North Africa
9781035338795 Edward Elgar Publishing
This is an open access title available under the terms of a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 License. It is free to read, download and share on Elgaronline.com.
This groundbreaking book sheds light on the alarming yet often overlooked issue of suicide in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. It critically examines the role, limitations, and suicide prevention strategies of existing social welfare systems and uncovers the complex interplay of factors driving suicidal behavior, including socioeconomic factors, political instability and conflict, family and social dynamics, religious beliefs and practices, gender disparities, and youth vulnerability.
This groundbreaking book sheds light on the alarming yet often overlooked issue of suicide in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. It critically examines the role, limitations, and suicide prevention strategies of existing social welfare systems and uncovers the complex interplay of factors driving suicidal behavior, including socioeconomic factors, political instability and conflict, family and social dynamics, religious beliefs and practices, gender disparities, and youth vulnerability.
More Information
Critical Acclaim
Contents
More Information
This groundbreaking book sheds light on the alarming yet often overlooked issue of suicide in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. It critically examines the role, limitations, and suicide prevention strategies of existing social welfare systems and uncovers the complex interplay of factors driving suicidal behavior.
Providing a comprehensive analysis of the complicated landscape of suicide across the MENA region, the book identifies six main determinants: socioeconomic factors, political instability and conflict, family and social dynamics, religious beliefs and practices, gender disparities, and youth vulnerability. It explores the diverse suicide prevention efforts across stable monarchies, countries facing political and economic upheaval, and societies grappling with war. A clarion call for action, this pioneering book emphasizes the silent crisis of suicide in MENA societies and the urgent need for holistic, evidence-based, and culturally informed public policy agendas to strengthen social support, mental health services, and suicide prevention initiatives.
Integrating multidisciplinary perspectives, this book is invaluable for students and scholars of public and social policy, public health, welfare states, middle eastern studies and development studies. Drawing upon sociological, epidemiological, and participatory research methodologies, its policy agenda serves as a roadmap for policymakers, researchers, and mental health professionals committed to suicide prevention worldwide.
Providing a comprehensive analysis of the complicated landscape of suicide across the MENA region, the book identifies six main determinants: socioeconomic factors, political instability and conflict, family and social dynamics, religious beliefs and practices, gender disparities, and youth vulnerability. It explores the diverse suicide prevention efforts across stable monarchies, countries facing political and economic upheaval, and societies grappling with war. A clarion call for action, this pioneering book emphasizes the silent crisis of suicide in MENA societies and the urgent need for holistic, evidence-based, and culturally informed public policy agendas to strengthen social support, mental health services, and suicide prevention initiatives.
Integrating multidisciplinary perspectives, this book is invaluable for students and scholars of public and social policy, public health, welfare states, middle eastern studies and development studies. Drawing upon sociological, epidemiological, and participatory research methodologies, its policy agenda serves as a roadmap for policymakers, researchers, and mental health professionals committed to suicide prevention worldwide.
Critical Acclaim
‘Silent Pain and Public Policy offers a profound if troubling exploration of the intersection between political stability, economic crises, and mental health. Examining stable monarchies to conflict regimes, this book reveals how socio-political contexts shape suicide rates and social welfare responses, providing new critical insights and fresh policy recommendations for addressing this pressing, though often shrouded, public health issue.’
– Leslie A. Pal, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Qatar
– Leslie A. Pal, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Qatar
Contents
Contents
List of contributors vii
Preface viii
1 The sociology of suicide and social welfare in the Middle
East and North Africa region 1
Anis Ben Brik and Bechir Aouani
2 Suicide in Morocco: a socio-legal and participatory approach 39
Mohssine Nadoui
3 Suicide in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia 63
Sultan Ahmad Naji AlAtefi
4 Suicide in Tunisia beyond 2011 87
Hanene Ben Slimene
5 The problem of suicide in Egyptian society 113
Ali Elmekawy
6 Suicide in Lebanon amidst economic collapse, political
stalemate, and societal disintegration 139
Bassam Rahif Al Ayoubi
7 Suicide in Algeria: root causes and prospects for solutions 162
Zoheir Chalabi
8 Suicide and cultural transformation in Mauritanian society 187
Ahmed Ould Beddou
9 Suicide in Iraq: the interplay of economic hardship, social
upheaval, and mental health 212
Hashim Sarhan Salman Alawadi
10 Suicide in Yemen: an epidemiological analysis of patterns
and social determinants 234
Taoufik Soltane Alhakimi
11 Saving lives, restoring hope: a roadmap for suicide
prevention in the Middle East and North Africa region 267
Anis Ben Brik
List of contributors vii
Preface viii
1 The sociology of suicide and social welfare in the Middle
East and North Africa region 1
Anis Ben Brik and Bechir Aouani
2 Suicide in Morocco: a socio-legal and participatory approach 39
Mohssine Nadoui
3 Suicide in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia 63
Sultan Ahmad Naji AlAtefi
4 Suicide in Tunisia beyond 2011 87
Hanene Ben Slimene
5 The problem of suicide in Egyptian society 113
Ali Elmekawy
6 Suicide in Lebanon amidst economic collapse, political
stalemate, and societal disintegration 139
Bassam Rahif Al Ayoubi
7 Suicide in Algeria: root causes and prospects for solutions 162
Zoheir Chalabi
8 Suicide and cultural transformation in Mauritanian society 187
Ahmed Ould Beddou
9 Suicide in Iraq: the interplay of economic hardship, social
upheaval, and mental health 212
Hashim Sarhan Salman Alawadi
10 Suicide in Yemen: an epidemiological analysis of patterns
and social determinants 234
Taoufik Soltane Alhakimi
11 Saving lives, restoring hope: a roadmap for suicide
prevention in the Middle East and North Africa region 267
Anis Ben Brik
