Attitudes Toward Suicide and Psychological Help-Seeking among Indo-Guyanese Americans

Abstract

Suicide is an international public health concern, and Guyana has one of the highest suicide rates in the world. While the global suicide rate is approximately 9 deaths per 100,000 people, estimates in Guyana are as high as 44 per 100,000. Within Guyana, suicide deaths are disproportionately prevalent among Indo-Guyanese people. Although research examining suicide and mental health in Guyana continues to expand, studies have scarcely focused on attitudes toward suicide and psychological help-seeking among the Indo-Guyanese diaspora. To the author’s knowledge, this study is the first quantitative investigation of attitudes toward suicide and self-stigma associated with seeking psychological help among Indo-Guyanese Americans. This study used a cross-sectional design with an anonymous online self-report questionnaire. Attitudes toward suicide and self-stigma associated with seeking psychological help were examined according to country of birth, sex, age, educational attainment, and relationship status using the Attitudes Toward Suicide Questionnaire (ATTS) and the Self-Stigma of Seeking Help Scale (SSOSH). After data cleaning, the final sample consisted of 79 Indo-Guyanese adults residing in the United States. Self-stigma associated with seeking psychological help did not significantly differ according to country of birth, sex, age group, educational attainment, or relationship status. However, comparisons with previously published studies indicated relatively elevated levels of self-stigma among the present sample. In contrast, several differences in attitudes toward suicide were observed across demographic groups. Participants born in Guyana expressed stronger agreement with beliefs emphasizing suicide prevention and intervention, as well as moral and social concerns surrounding suicide, whereas participants born in the United States demonstrated greater endorsement of views relating to the acceptability and autonomy of suicide. Male participants exhibited greater agreement with moral and social perspectives and subscribed to more suicide-related misconceptions than female participants. This study contributes to the limited research into mental health-related perceptions among Indo-Guyanese Americans. The results suggest that attitudes toward suicide may vary more than self-stigma associated with seeking psychological help across demographic groups within this sample. Overall, these findings highlight the value of culturally responsive suicide prevention efforts and emphasize the need for continued research examining the influence of sociocultural factors on suicide perceptions and help- seeking stigma within Indo-Guyanese American communities.