Introduction

Many young people make nonfatal deliberate attempts to kill themselves. This phenomenon, also known as “parasuicide”, is at least ten times more common than suicide; however, the exact prevalence of such acts is unknown. Although the exact relationship between parasuicidal acts and suicide is controversial, it is important to note that the majority of these acts are by adolescents and young adults who constitute a pool from which many of the future suicides are drawn (Diekstra, 1994).

Attempted suicide is relatively rare under 12 years of age, although there may be isolated cases under the age of five. Suicide attempts in young children may well go unrecognized. The rarity of attempted suicides in this age may be because the concept of death develops late in childhood, with full awareness of the implications of death not being gained until early adolescence. Possibly serious impulses toward suicidal behavior do not occur until the concept of death has developed. Other protective factors which have been suggested include the lower rates of depression in young children, their close integration in the family, and the necessity for a marked degree of cognitive maturation before a child can develop feelings such as despair and hopelessness (Hawton and Catalan, 1987).

Although suicide attempts are far more common than completed suicide, the literature on it is far more variable and inconsistent than that on completed suicide.