Suicide Note
Suicidology Online 2011; 2:75-79.
ISSN 2078-5488
The Presentation of the Self: An Hypothesis about Suicide Notes
Bijou Yang, Ph.D.1 David Lester, Ph.D.2,
Department of Economics and International Business, Lebow College of Business, Drexel University, Philadelphia, USA 2 Psychology Program, The Richard Stockton College of New Jersey, USA
1
Essay
Submitted to SOL: 24th November 2010; accepted: 7th November 2011; published: 14th November 2011
Abstract: Typically, suicide notes are viewed as providing insights into the psychodynamics of the suicidal individual. The present essay proposes, in contrast, that some suicidal individuals use their suicide note to present a picture of themselves that they want others to remember. Suicide notes may sometimes present a façade self rather than a real self. Keywords: suicide notes, presentation of self
Copyrights belong to the Author(s). Suicidology Online (SOL) is a peer-reviewed open-access journal publishing under the Creative Commons Licence 3.0.
In taking any psychological test, there is always the possibility that, instead of responding truthfully, individuals wish to present a particular view of themselves. To detect this, the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI), for example, has subscales to detect presenting a healthy self (faking good) and presenting a pathological self (faking bad). Research has supported the ability of people to fake the image that they present to others. For example, Braginsky, Braginsky and Ring (1969) demonstrated that schizophrenic psychiatric inpatients could chose whether or not to report major symptoms (such as hallucinations) depending on the expected outcome (being placed on a locked ward versus being released). In a second study, Braginsky and Braginsky (1971) found that adolescents in an institution for retarded could vary their mental age on intelligence by three years, again depending on the
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David Lester, Ph.D. Distinguished Professor of
ISSN 2078-5488
The Presentation of the Self: An Hypothesis about Suicide Notes
Bijou Yang, Ph.D.1 David Lester, Ph.D.2,
Department of Economics and International Business, Lebow College of Business, Drexel University, Philadelphia, USA 2 Psychology Program, The Richard Stockton College of New Jersey, USA
1
Essay
Submitted to SOL: 24th November 2010; accepted: 7th November 2011; published: 14th November 2011
Abstract: Typically, suicide notes are viewed as providing insights into the psychodynamics of the suicidal individual. The present essay proposes, in contrast, that some suicidal individuals use their suicide note to present a picture of themselves that they want others to remember. Suicide notes may sometimes present a façade self rather than a real self. Keywords: suicide notes, presentation of self
Copyrights belong to the Author(s). Suicidology Online (SOL) is a peer-reviewed open-access journal publishing under the Creative Commons Licence 3.0.
In taking any psychological test, there is always the possibility that, instead of responding truthfully, individuals wish to present a particular view of themselves. To detect this, the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI), for example, has subscales to detect presenting a healthy self (faking good) and presenting a pathological self (faking bad). Research has supported the ability of people to fake the image that they present to others. For example, Braginsky, Braginsky and Ring (1969) demonstrated that schizophrenic psychiatric inpatients could chose whether or not to report major symptoms (such as hallucinations) depending on the expected outcome (being placed on a locked ward versus being released). In a second study, Braginsky and Braginsky (1971) found that adolescents in an institution for retarded could vary their mental age on intelligence by three years, again depending on the
*
David Lester, Ph.D. Distinguished Professor of
References: Asinof, E. (1971). Craig and Joan. New York: Viking. Best, S. (2010). Liquid terrorism: Altruistic fundamentalism in the context of liquid modernity. Sociology, 44, 678-694, Braginsky, B., Braginsky, D., & Ring, L