Female suicide and wife abuse: a cross-cultural perspective.

ABSTRACT

PIP: This article focuses on the relationship between wife abuse and female suicide in the Melanesian societies through a presentation of case studies. In Papua New Guinea, domestic violence was found to be a normal part of marital relationships, and the major context in which suicide occurred was after severe and physically violent domestic arguments. Abused, shamed, and powerless wives take their own lives to shift the burden of humiliation from themselves to their tormentors. In West New Britain, Fiji, and South American societies, suicide associated with marital violence were also common. Data from a number of societies indicate that wife abuse remains to be one of the most important precipitants of female suicide and suicide attempts. An understanding of the dynamics that exists between wife abuse and female suicide should be of great value to professionals who deal with women faced with said problems.