In many countries of the world the number of persons that commit or attempt suicide has risen considerably over the past two decades. Particularly among young people suicide rates have increased dramatically, suicide now ranking as the second or third cause of death among them.
The causes of this development have been questioned by health care workers, scientists and policy makers. Although much still remains unknown, it has become increasingly clear that one way in which a society affects the probability that an individual will die by his or her own hand is through the attitudes it adopts...

Recent estimates by The World Health Organisation and The World Bank indicate that throughout the world each and every year more than 800,000 persons die as a consequence of suicide. This means that the death toll of suicide equals and in many countries even exceeds that of road traffic accidents. In addition to the number of suicidal deaths, at least ten times as many persons make non-fatal attempts to take their lives or harm themselves, often seriously enough to require medical attention and not infrequently resulting in irreversible disability. But still these figures inadequately...