Research Blog #11: Counter-Argument Book Review #3

My theory suggests that nursing students are at a higher risk to commit suicide because of all the academic stress that they are under. However Emile Durkheim, the famous sociologist claimed that suicide was a result of a lack of connections within society. For example, people with a lack of connection from a group or lack of regulations of behavior. Durkheim did not suggest that suicide was a result of an individual's feelings.

Therefore, I decided to use an english version of Durkheim's book, "Le Suicide."

1.) (Photo is of Emile Durkheim himself)

2.)  Durkheim, Émile, and George Simpson. Emile Durkheim; [selections from His Work,. New York:

                    Crowell, 1963. Print.
3.) This book includes Emile Durkheim's investigations on why one commits suicide. Durkheim has  established the three classifications of suicide: egoistic, altruistic, and anomic.
4.) Emile Durkheim is a famous sociologist who explored suicide. Durkheim has made a large contribution into the world of sociology. He collected a lot of data pertaining to suicide and had written many books on the topic as well.
5.) Terms: (The three categories of suicide)
Egoistic- Results from the lack of integration between individual and society.

Altruistic- Results from the individual's taking his own life because of higher commandments, either those of religious sacrifice or unthinking political allegiance.

Anomic- Results from the lack of regulation of the individual by society.

6.) Three Quotations with Explanations:

#1.) "The individualistic characteristics of the spouse is unimportant in explaining the suicide-rate; it depends upon the structure of the family and the roles played by its members." (page 105)
Explanation: This quote argues that family structure has a role in suicide rates. Emile Durkheim did not believe suicide linked to the actual person, but of the people they come from (society). In my argument, I do not support this belief.
#2.) "Durkheim seeks to establish that there are individual forms of suicide which display mixed types, such as the ego-anomic, the altruist-anomic, and the ago altruist." (page 97)
Explanation: These forms of suicide mentioned in the quote above all relate the individual's reason for suicide back to their society. I have already listed the terms for all three of these forms. However, I included this quote in my book review, because they all connect with Durkheim's theory (which differs from my research theory).
#3.) "Durkheim is skeptical about the reliability of the statistics on suicide." (page 240)
Explanation: I chose this quote because in the research I have come across, there are several statistics corresponding to suicide. I find it interesting that Durkheim does not fully trust in statistics on suicide.   

7.) This material greatly helps me to explore my research question since I believe nursing students are at a higher risk for suicide in comparison to other students. I believe this to be true since they are put under a lot of academic stress. However, this book claims that suicide is not a result to this matter but that it is a result of a lack on conformity between the individual and it's society. While reading Durkheim's work, I am able to see other viewpoints of suicide that have been tested throughout history. By reading his work, I might come to the conclusion that perhaps nursing students are not more likely to commit suicide. However, I still firmly believe that there is something connected between nursing students and suicide, and that it is not because of the possiblity that they are "unconnected to their socities."

8.) This book clearly argues against the books I have read for the past book reviews. In my previous book reviews, I read about college students and stress. I also read about students and suicide and what the major factors are. Those books all claimed that stress and depression were contributing factors to student suicide. However, "Le Suicide" strongly disagrees with this.

Blog #10: My Case

My case explores how nursing students are at a higher risk for suicide. My chief example that I plan on using in my paper is the case studied in Northern Greece.

In this article, it is stated that worldwide, suicide is the leading cause of death amongst adolescents. This article then discusses how nursing students are primarily the ones to be under such stress that afterwards leads to suicide. This studies purpose was to find out whether or not the nursing students in Greece were experiening depressive symptoms or suicidal thoughts. The conclusion of this study was that nursing students are in fact under academic stress and that this can be helped through counseling. All of my previous posts relate to this article in some way, so therefore this one article covers exactly what I am trying to prove in my paper.

Online Material:

website link

Research Blog #9: Visual

Visual

(My image was unable to show)

However, if you click on the link above it will take you to a visual that goes very well with my topic.
Within the boxes are reasons will nursing students are under so much stress and what some possible solutions might be.

Blog #8: Book Review #2

1.)

2.)

Holmes, Ronald M., and Stephen T. Holmes. Suicide: Theory, Practice, and Investigation. Thousand

             Oaks: Sage Publications, 2005. Print.

3.) This book investigates all aspects of suicide including cause, biological factors, mental health, etc. It focuses greatly on youths and how they are especially prone to suicide. According to one of the tables in this book, suicide is the 11th cause for deaths in the United States. Mentioned in one part of this book, are physicians and how they are especially prone to suicide since they have such high stress from dealing with such ill patients. After this part, the book mentions that certain occupations are not the result for higher suicide rates. (This is a good counter argument for my paper.) Another part of this book includes the work of Emile Durkheim, and his contributions to the study of suicide. For example, he has studied suicide from a social and societal perspective.

4.) There are two authors, Ronald M. Holmes and Stephen T. Holmes.

-Ronald M. Holmes has written several books all relating to suicide, death, crimes, etc. He is also the Vice President of the National Center for the Study of Unresolved Homicides.

-Stephen T. Holmes is the Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice at the University of Central Flordia.

*Both authors have knowledge in regards to crimes involving suicide and have written several books which demonstrates their knowledge in the topic.

5.)

Key terms/Key Concepts

        1.) Anomie: Lack of the usual social or ethical standards in an individual or group.

        2.) Suicide: Sui- oneself Cide- from the latin verb caedere, to kill (To kill oneself)

6.) Quotations

#1)  (Also mentioned above) "Suicide experts now inform us that there is no significant statistical relationship between suicide and occupation" (8).

-I chose this quote because it could potentially be used for my counter argument. My argument suggests students studying nursing are at a higher risk for suicide. However, this quote suggests that there is no relation between the two.

#2)  "Using the scientific method of the times, Durkheim saw suicide as a phenomenon that arose from societal pressures and influences" (27).

-This quotes supports my theory that nursing students are more prone to suicide because of their pressure from their vigorous curriculums. Although I plan on using Durkheim's theories as my counter argument in my paper, I still feel this quote can be incorporated into my paper.

#3) (Also mentioned above) "Physicians also have a high rate of suicide, perhaps because of the stress involved in the practice of medicine...The high stress of dealing with patients who are ill and many times terminally ill may take a terrible toll on the psychological health of physicians" (7).

-I chose this quote because although it does not focus solely on nursing students, it still pertains to the medical field. Nursing students do have a lot of stress and can be in contact with severely ill patients during their clinicals.


7.) This book has helped because it includes the work of Emile Durkheim, who I have recently decided to inlclude in my research project. Also, this book includes statistics that I can potentially use in my paper.

8.) This book does not differ completely from the one I used in the previous book review, however it does include some new topics. For example, it does not only focus on college students, but on the population as a whole. Although I do not plan on focusing on this book entirely, I feel it have information that is useful.

Picture for Research Blog #7: Book Review

                                                   (Picture of book for my research project)

Research Blog #7: Book Review

1.)


2.)
Vye, Christopher, Kathlene Scholljegerdes, and I. David Welch. Under Pressure and Overwhelmed:
Coping with Anxiety in College. Westport, CT: Praeger, 2007. Print.
3.) This book largely emphasizes how stressful college can be. This book also suggests that perhaps colleges and universities appear tranquil, but that they really are not. Students as a result suffer from a series of emotions such as depression, anxiety, guilt, and etc. This reading suggests that perhaps these students do not necessarily need to go through this experience. Clearly college is a stress trigger, however these psychological and emotional issues are not normal. This book is really meant to help students realize that they can change by receiving help.
4.) The authors:
Christopher Vye: Christopher is a doctor who works with patients that have all types of anxiety disorders. He also has a great deal of experience from aiding patients with psychological treatment intended to help with their disorders.
Kathlene Scholljegerdes: Kathleen is a psychologist for mental/behavioral health.
David I. Welch: (No information found)
5.) Key terms/Key concepts:
1.) Anxiety-A feeling of worry, nervousness, or unease, typically about an imminent event or something with an uncertain outcome.
2.) Cope-Deal effectively with something difficult. (Students must learn to cope with academic pressures)
6.)
Quotation #1:
"In the midst of this new found freedom, anxiety can surface when the demands of attending class, reading texts, preparing projects, writing papers, taking tests, and the other academic demands become intense" (45).
I chose this quote because I like how it states "the other academic demands become intense." Not only is college stressful for the reasons mentioned above, but primarily because of the other intense demands, such as applying for specific professional programs. Therefore, it is important for students to not feel so much anxiety during their "less intense" years such as their general courses.
Quotation #2:
"Some students find, however, that anxiety interferes with their learning and test taking to such an extent that their grades and their well-being are seriously affected" (98).
I like this quote because I feel it is 100% true. Several students suffer from anxiety and it is seriously affecting their well being. I also like how the quote emphasizes students well-being, their psychological and emotional states.
Quotation #3:
"...they are entering another culture, the culture of higher education, and its unique blend of demands and pressures" (4).
The words "demands" and "pressures" relates significantly to my research project. I want to emphasize that these students are under an immense amount of pressure and that it is causing unhealthy results. (This aspect , demands and pressure can be seen as the potential cause for suicide)
7.) I believe this material does have the ability to help me with my research project. I feel like it contains all the general aspects of what the average college student is going through and how it is a typical experience. However, the anxiety and fear is not necessarily a normal experience that all students go through. Students living with these anxiety disorders need to learn how to cope with their anxieties in order to pursue a successful academic career, not simply just one semester of general courses.