Review of "One in Thirteen"
By Jessica PorterRobins Lane Press, 2001
Review by Christian Perring, Ph.D on Jul 13th 2004
One in Thirteen is based on articles on teen suicide by Jessica Porter that appeared in Education Week in April 2000. It is a slim book with a total of 110 pages and three main parts. It contains many statistics about the growing rates at which American teens kill themselves and the factors that lead them to such desperation. It also discusses some of the ways that they perform their self-destruction. Not surprisingly, guns are the most popular method: the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) states that in the 1990s, 67% of males who committed suicide used a firearm. The book also describes many teens who have killed themselves, and the events that led up to their deaths. In each sketch, the reader gets some sense of the personalities behind the actions. The third part is devoted to approaches of suicide prevention that are used around the country, with interviews with the individuals running those programs.
The message behind Porter's book is strong and simple: as our society becomes more fragmented and young people experience more stress and isolation, they are more likely to succumb to the pressures they experience. Since they are also particularly impulsive, they may act on their self-destructive feelings with no delay. When they do give warning signs, teachers, school nurses and even parents often ignore them, dismissing them as the usual emotional storms of adolescence. When the young people feel the urge to kill themselves, the means to do so are all too often easily available, with loaded guns lying around houses or easily available through friends or drug-sellers. While African Americans have lower rates of suicides than white youths, their suicide rates have been steadily increasing. Gay, lesbian, bisexual and transsexual youth are at especially high risk for suicide. And of course, children from troubled homes are also more likely to kill themselves.
Many have commented that teen suicide is reaching epidemic proportions in the USA. The CDC estimates that teen suicide rates more than tripled between 1960 and 1990, and in 1997, one in thirteen high school students attempted suicide. Half of all high school students have seriously considered suicide by the time they graduate. One in Thirteen highlights these problems with its personal and moving stories, and points the way to some solutions. Parents, teachers and clinicians may well find it informative.
© 2004 Christian Perring. All rights reserved.
Christian Perring, Ph.D., is Academic Chair of the Arts & Humanities Division and Chair of the Philosophy Department at Dowling College, Long Island. He is also editor of Metapsychology Online Review. His main research is on philosophical issues in medicine, psychiatry and psychology.
Resources
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Articles
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The Nature of Suicide
- The Nature of Suicide
- Defining Suicide
- Suicide: A Reactive Action
- Suicide Statistics
- Other Factors Contributing to Suicide Risk
- Suicide Triggers
- Suicide Triggers Continued
- Tying it All Together: Why Does Someone Become Suicidal?
- Becoming Suicidal: Biological Contributions
- Becoming Suicidal: Sociocultural Contributions
- Suicide Prevention and Societal Measures
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Coping with Suicidality
- Coping with Suicidality
- How did you get to this suicidal place?
- Why does suicide seem like a solution to your problem(s)?
- How do you know your level of suicide risk?
- Suicide Warning Signs
- Suicide: What Should I Do if I'm Suicidal?
- Suicide: What will happen to you when you ask for help?
- Outpatient Suicide Treatment-Finding A Psychotherapist
- The Initial Suicide Treatment Interview
- Jeremy's Story
- Follow-up Suicide Therapy Visits
- Suicide: Other Things You Can Do to Help Keep Yourself Safe
- Suicide and Self Harm Resources
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Helping A Friend or Family Member who is Suicidal
- Helping a Friend or Family Member Who is Suicidal
- Understanding Suicidal Crises
- Why Do People Become Suicidal and What Can I do to Help?
- How Can I Judge the Level of Suicide Risk?
- What Are Other Suicide Warning Signs?
- What Happens When a Suicidal Person Asks for Help?
- How Do We Find a Therapist for Suicide Outpatient Treatment?
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- How Do I Handle My Own Reactions Following a Suicide or a Suicide Attempt?
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The Nature of Suicide
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- A Sadly Troubled History
- Alive
- Autopsy of a Suicidal Mind
- Bloodletting
- Boy Interrupted
- Comprehending Suicide
- Crosses
- Duplicity
- Eight Stories Up
- Fatal Attachments
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26 more
- Heavier than Heaven
- Her Husband
- History of Suicide
- How I Stayed Alive When My Brain Was Trying to Kill Me
- Human Dignity and Assisted Death
- Leaving You
- Life Interrupted
- Like the Red Panda
- Making Sense of Suicide
- Myths about Suicide
- Night Falls Fast
- No Right Turn
- One in Thirteen
- Relational Suicide Assessment
- Silent Grief
- Suicidal
- Suicidal Behavior in Children and Adolescents
- Suicide
- Sylvia
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- The Art of Misdiagnosis
- The Clinical Science of Suicide Prevention
- The Final Leap
- Thirteen Reasons Why
- Unholy Ghost
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Links
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Videos
- Developing the Family Intervention for Suicide Prevention (FISP)
- Addressing the Rise of Teen Suicide
- Feeling down? Let's talk - Prevention of suicide among adolescents
- NPW 2017: Suicide and Substance Use in Young People
- Addressing Suicide
- Suicide Warning Signs
- How to Ask if Someone is Suicidal
- Suicide Tops Injury Deaths
- Assessment and Intervention with Suicidal Clients: Volume 2
- Assessment and Intervention with Suicidal Clients: Volume 1
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14 more
- Assessment and Intervention with Suicidal Clients: Volume 3
- Preventing suicide: a global imperative
- Youth Suicide Risk
- Preventing Death by Suicide-Strategies to Help Children, Youth and Families
- The bridge between suicide and life
- Beyond the Data -- Preventing Suicide: A Comprehensive Public Health Approach
- Preventing Suicide: A Comprehensive Public Health Approach
- For Those Considering Suicide
- How to Help Someone Who is Suicidal
- Teen Suicide Prevention
- Reach Out - Preventing Teen Suicide
- Suicide Prevention with Lynn Keane
- Addressing Suicidal Thoughts and Behaviors in Substance Abuse Treatment
- Suicide Signs
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