An online seminar titled “A Multi-Disciplinary Perspective on the Phenomenon of Suicide and Awareness” was organized by Üsküdar University Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences to increase social awareness regarding suicide.
The opening speeches of the program were delivered by the President of Üsküdar University and Head of the Executive Board Prof. Nevzat Tarhan, Rector of Üsküdar University Prof. Nazife Güngör, and Dean of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences Prof. Deniz Ülke Kaynak.
Prof. Nevzat Tarhan: “If we don’t confront the facts, we cannot correct ourselves”
President of Üsküdar University and Head of the Executive Board, Psychiatrist Prof. Nevzat Tarhan, emphasized that awareness campaigns alone are not sufficient in preventing suicide, and that risk groups and cases need to be scientifically analyzed.
Tarhan stated that systematic studies on suicide prevention should be carried out in Turkey, saying, “If we don’t confront the facts, we cannot correct ourselves. We cannot prevent suicide by saying nice words. Suicide is not prevented solely by public awareness campaigns; it is learned through the analysis of cases.”
Tarhan stated that the causes of suicide should also be investigated through sociological studies, saying, “Suicide risk groups within society need to be identified, and intervention plans need to be made by evaluating statistics according to these risk groups. We can only solve the problem if we diagnose it.”
Beware of copycat suicides!
Prof. Tarhan noted that cases in Turkey cannot be explained solely by economic reasons; he said that different factors such as mental illnesses, alcohol and substance use, gambling and betting, loneliness, relationship losses, violence, bullying, and hopelessness should also be evaluated.
Prof. Tarhan stated, “The root causes of this need to be analyzed in Turkey. What is causing this? Some attribute it solely to economic reasons, but there are many different causes. The impact of socialization, media, and copycat suicides should also not be overlooked.”
“Hopelessness and inability to see a way out are important”
Tarhan stated that loneliness, relationship loss, violence, and bullying are also among the risk factors, saying, “Feelings of hopelessness, the thought of ‘no way out,’ and confusion about meaning can increase suicide risk in people. Cyberbullying is also particularly important among adolescents.”
Tarhan also touched upon the effects of digitalization on young people, stating that constantly following others' lives on social media can foster feelings of inadequacy, and FOMO, defined as the “fear of missing out on developments,” is also one of the phenomena that should be considered in this regard.
“If we don’t confront the facts, we cannot correct ourselves”
Prof. Tarhan stated that preventing suicide would not be possible solely through informational meetings, saying, “If we don’t confront the facts, we cannot correct ourselves. We cannot prevent suicide by saying nice words. Suicide is not prevented solely by public awareness campaigns; it is learned through the analysis of cases.”
Prof. Tarhan stated, “A person saying ‘I want to die’ is not enough on its own. Suicidal ideation, suicidal intent, suicide plan, and attempt are evaluated separately. A person's thought of death is one thing, and a thought of suicide is another.”
“Antidepressants alone are not enough, they should be accompanied by therapy”
Prof. Tarhan also touched upon the relationship between depression and suicide risk, stating, “Antidepressant medications provide significant pharmacological improvement, but they are not enough on their own. They must definitely be used in conjunction with therapy.”
Prof. Nazife Güngör: “Major transformations can create a chaotic environment in societies”
Rector of Üsküdar University Prof. Nazife Güngör also pointed out that the phenomenon of suicide has existed throughout human history, and that individuals question their existence and the meaning of life more during periods of major social transformation.
Prof. Güngör said, “Whenever major transformations occur at the macro level, chaos and crises somehow arise in societies. One of the most important indicators of chaotic environments is individuals living within society questioning their existence in the world and in life again.”
“Humans repeatedly question existence and meaning”
Prof. Güngör stated that individuals question the meaning of life when faced with crises, saying, “As they suffer, experience pain, or struggle to adapt to new developments and transformations, they repeatedly question their existence. When they cannot find answers to the questions they ask themselves or have difficulty finding solutions to problems, certain alternatives emerge.”
Prof. Güngör stated that managing one's emotions and conflicts can strengthen the meaning of life, saying, “For a person to be able to manage their own mental state, their own crises, their own internal and external conflicts more easily; means to find existing and sustaining their existence more meaningful.”
Prof. Kaynak: “Abundance of connections and disconnection coexist”
Dean of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences Prof. Deniz Ülke Kaynak, on the other hand, pointed to the importance of approaching the phenomenon of suicide from different disciplines.
Prof. Kaynak emphasized the importance of universities sharing their academic knowledge with society and drew attention to the increasing loneliness arising with digitalization.
Prof. Kaynak stated, “We have entered a new environment where we have the opportunity to establish an infinite number of connections around the world, yet we have almost no bonds left. The abundance of connections and disconnection coexist, putting people in a very difficult situation.”
Prof. Kaynak stated that figures related to the phenomenon of suicide should not be evaluated in isolation, and that social and psychological changes should also be taken into consideration.
Barış Erdoğan: “Although suicide seems highly individual, it is a social problem”
Prof. Barış Erdoğan, Head of the Sociology Department at Üsküdar University, who delivered his presentation titled “Suicide as a Social Phenomenon,” stated that suicide is not only a subject of psychology and psychiatry.
Erdoğan pointed to the importance of discussing the phenomenon of suicide by different disciplines such as history, philosophy, and sociology, saying, “The phenomenon we call suicide, when viewed from one side, is extremely individual. So how did such an individual issue become a social problem? It is precisely at this point that sociology addresses the phenomenon of suicide.”
“If we see suicide only as a psychological or economic phenomenon, we will be mistaken”
Prof. Erdoğan stated, “If we try to see suicide only as a psychological phenomenon, or if we think it is a case caused solely by economic problems, we will be mistaken.”
Erdoğan stated that the variation in suicide rates from society to society and from period to period reveals the social dimension of the phenomenon, saying, “Human biology is roughly the same all over the world. If we ask why people's suicidal tendencies increase in one country while they decrease in another, then we need to look at another side of the picture.”
“As our bonds break, the elements that connect us to life also decrease”
Prof. Erdoğan, drawing attention to the protective role of social integration, pointed out that bonds formed with family, social environment, and social groups are important for people to hold onto life.
Erdoğan noted that suicide is perceived as an individual act at first glance, stating, “The phenomenon we call suicide, when viewed from one side, is extremely individual. So how did such an individual issue become a social problem? It is precisely at this point that sociology addresses the phenomenon of suicide.”
“Individuals resilient to social changes should be raised”
Erdoğan stated that the effects of rapid social changes on individuals should also be taken into account, and that individual psychological interventions alone should not be sufficient.
Prof. Erdoğan stated, “I believe that if we produce policies that will raise and create socially resilient individuals against social changes, we can make significant progress on the issue of suicide.”
Prof. Hadiye Yılmaz addressed the phenomenon of suicide with historical cases
Prof. Hadiye Yılmaz, Head of the History Department at Üsküdar University, delivered her presentation titled “The Phenomenon of Suicide Throughout History: Historical Case Examples and the Reality of Turkey.” Yılmaz evaluated the historical aspect of the subject through the death of Sultan Abdülaziz and the suicide of Beşir Fuad, which created a wide public echo in the late Ottoman period.
“Even today, we cannot speak clearly about Sultan Abdülaziz”
Prof. Yılmaz reminded that Sultan Abdülaziz was found with his wrists cut five days after being dethroned at Feriye Palace, stating that discussions about whether the incident was suicide or murder continue to this day.
Drew attention to the Beşir Fuad case
Prof. Yılmaz stated that the suicide of Beşir Fuad, one of the early representatives of materialist thought in Ottoman intellectual history, is a clearer case in terms of historical documents.
Yılmaz stated that Beşir Fuad's attempt to record his experiences while ending his life led to the idealization of the event in some circles over time, and he warned that this could be a misleading approach.
“It is not easy to say that suicide was less common in the Ottoman Empire”
Prof. Yılmaz emphasized that record-keeping systems should be taken into account when evaluating historical data, and stated that it is not scientifically possible to draw a definitive conclusion that suicide was less common in the Ottoman period.
The effect of modernization, urbanization, and individualism…
Yılmaz also drew attention to the process of modernization in the historical change of the phenomenon of suicide; he stated that intensive industrialization, urbanization, individualism, secularization, and economic and social instabilities are among the factors that researchers focus on.
Prof. Yılmaz stated that the earlier adoption of record-keeping systems in Europe might have increased visibility in statistics, and noted that stronger religious and community-based norms in Ottoman society also created a different social structure.
Prof. Yılmaz stated that the historical process reveals an important point, saying, “We see that suicide is not merely an individual act. Secondly, we see a historical relationship between modernization and the phenomenon of suicide. But I refrain from saying; I am not saying modernization increased suicide, we are saying there is a relationship between them.”
“We are becoming isolated and losing social support”
Prof. Yılmaz stated that the transition from traditional to modern society also changed an individual's relationship with their social environment, saying, “When transitioning from a traditional social structure to a modern one, there are fewer people who were previously with us in everything – family, neighborhood, community, etc. Consequently, we are becoming isolated and losing social support.”
Tayfun Doğan: “The strongest thing we have is social support”
Prof. Tayfun Doğan, a faculty member of the Psychology Department, who delivered his presentation titled “Reasons to Hold Onto Life: Psychology of Hope,” evaluated the psychological dimension of the phenomenon of suicide and the protective role of hope.
Doğan stated that people sometimes need a small point of support to reconnect with life, saying, “Sometimes, if there is a tiny place they can connect to, a place they can hold onto, people can give up on suicide. That's why the strongest thing we have in suicide cases is actually social support.”
“Hopelessness is very important in depression”
Prof. Doğan emphasized that mental health problems should not be overlooked, drawing attention to the relationship between depression and hopelessness in particular, stating, “We should not overlook mental health problems. Because here, especially the decrease in hope and the inability to find a reason to live are very important factors.”
“Hopelessness is losing your belief in everything that connects you to life”
Doğan stated that hopelessness is not merely about feeling bad, saying, “True hopelessness means having lost your belief in everything that connects you to life. This could be your family, your faith, your career, your ideals. It means having lost your belief in everything that binds you to life.”
Doğan stated that a hopeless person tends to think that the negative conditions they are in will never change, saying, “Hopelessness means absolutizing the moment. Stopping the calendar, stopping the clock; thinking that our current conditions will never change, mortgaging the future, is what we call hopelessness.”
“Hope can be learned and developed”
Prof. Doğan stated that the concept of hope is not just an emotion but can also be considered a mental skill, emphasizing the importance of its developability, saying, “I largely see hope as a mental skill. Hope is related to our mental attitude and our approach to events, much more than to our current circumstances. The fact that hope is learnable and developable is its most promising aspect for us. If we define something as a skill, it means it can be learned, taught, developed, and increased.”
“A hopeful person does not focus on a single option”
Doğan stated that hopeful people believe the future can be better, think their own efforts are important for this, and can develop alternative ways to achieve their goals, saying, “Hopeful people think, ‘There are many ways for me to achieve my goals.’ This is an incredibly powerful sentence. Knowing that there are options in life and not focusing on a single door is very important.”
Research Assistant Dr. Merve Arlı Özekes in the Philosophy Department also addressed the subject from a philosophical perspective with her presentation titled “Suicide as a Philosophical Inquiry.”
