Risk factors of suicide among public university students of Bangladesh: A qualitative exploration

Salma Akter Urme; Md Syful Islam; Hasena Begum; N M Rabiul Awal Chowdhury

doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e09659

Risk factors of suicide among public university students of Bangladesh: A qualitative exploration

Heliyon. 2022 Jun 8;8(6):e09659. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e09659. eCollection 2022 Jun.

Authors

Salma Akter Urme¹, Md Syful Islam², Hasena Begum³, N M Rabiul Awal Chowdhury³

Affiliations

¹ BRAC James P Grant School of Public Health, BRAC University, Dhaka, Bangladesh.
² Department of Population Science, Jatiya Kabi Kazi Nazrul Islam University, Trishal, Mymensingh, Bangladesh.
³ Department of Anthropology, Comilla University, Cumilla, Bangladesh.

Abstract

Introduction: Suicidal deaths among the students have increased worldwide where Bangladesh is not an exception and the reasons are not well documented.

Objective: Revealing the common risk factors of suicide among the public university students of Bangladesh was the aim of this study.

Methods: This study utilized a qualitative research design and data was collected from five public universities of Bangladesh where suicidal death found prevailing. Guidelines containing open ended questions were used to conduct in-depth interviews and key informant interviews among thirty public university students and five university professionals respectively. Both purposive and snowball sampling was used to select respondents. Data of this study was analyzed thematically.

Results: Findings of this study suggest most of the public university students, committed suicide shows a history of depression, hopelessness, perfectionism, family conflicts, relationship break-up, lack of social support, financial crisis, and academic stress before their attempts.

Conclusion: Arranging seminars, workshops, and awareness-raising campaigns are urgently needed to change suicidal behavior among the public university students of Bangladesh. A strong support system should be built with suggestions from mental health professionals, policymakers, researchers, and academicians to ensure good psychological well-being among the students.

Keywords: Depression; Qualitative; Risk; Social support; Stress; Suicide.