Running head: RESEARCH PROPOSAL 10 RESEARCH PROPOSAL 8 Research Proposal Jamie Bass Argosy University March 3, 2016 ABSTRACT Suicide is experienced in all parts of parts of the world. Even though it has been argued that suicide is common amongst the elderly in the society, it is worth noting that even children as young as 13 years old have committed suicide. The myths and misconceptions surrounding suicidal individuals are inherently different from one culture to another. For instance, in some cultures it is believed that suicidal individuals are possessed by demons. Other cultures attribute suicide to generational curses whereas other cultures attribute suicide to such factors as depression and other mental disorders. The purpose of the proposed research is to establish the risk factors of suicide and realize possible strategies which if undertaken can help to counteract suicide and hence its adverse effects in the society. In this proposal are the points to be addressed in the course of the research. It is anticipated that there will be objections to the factors to be established and hence part of this proposal are possible objections and how each of the possible objections will be addressed. The research will use secondary sources of information and hence part of this proposal is an annotated bibliography of the sources that will be utilized in course of the research. Comment by Spencer Ellsworth: This is good, but could you state it more as a piece of argumentation? Like “This paper argues that early intervention can prevent suicide if done correctly.” WORKING THESIS Suicide has negatively affected the society, and unless there are mitigation strategies to curb this menace, it will continue to take the lives of many people in the society. EXPLANATION Suicide is the act of human beings voluntarily taking their lives. Research has shown that it has always been caused by a sense of despair or hopelessness. All these issues may be induced by mental illness which may include Bipolar disorder or even depression. Suicide has been traumatizing and shameful to the bereaved families and many people in the society have always viewed it as a cowardice way of taking one’s life. Many suicidal persons have been haunted by their thoughts in many cases this is depicted as a very personal process (Goldsmith, Pellmar, Kleinman & Bunney, 2002). In this paper, it is very much possible to look at what suicide is and the risk factors associated with suicide. A study conducted in Sweden consisting of 271 men aged 15 years and above revealed that mental disorder is a major suicide risk factor. It is thus recommended that the research paper will dwell on mental disorder and substance abuse as risk factors that contribute to suicide as well as medical conditions and psychosocial states. Harris & Barraclough (2009) also established a causal relationship between mental disorder and suicide a factor that further makes the proposed research ...

1. Running head: RESEARCH PROPOSAL 10
RESEARCH PROPOSAL 8
Research Proposal
Jamie Bass
Argosy University
March 3, 2016
ABSTRACT
Suicide is experienced in all parts of parts of the world. Even
though it has been argued that suicide is common amongst the
elderly in the society, it is worth noting that even children as
young as 13 years old have committed suicide. The myths and
misconceptions surrounding suicidal individuals are inherently
different from one culture to another. For instance, in some
cultures it is believed that suicidal individuals are possessed by
demons. Other cultures attribute suicide to generational curses
whereas other cultures attribute suicide to such factors as

2. depression and other mental disorders. The purpose of the
proposed research is to establish the risk factors of suicide and
realize possible strategies which if undertaken can help to
counteract suicide and hence its adverse effects in the society.
In this proposal are the points to be addressed in the course of
the research. It is anticipated that there will be objections to the
factors to be established and hence part of this proposal are
possible objections and how each of the possible objections will
be addressed. The research will use secondary sources of
information and hence part of this proposal is an annotated
bibliography of the sources that will be utilized in course of the
research. Comment by Spencer Ellsworth: This is good, but
could you state it more as a piece of argumentation? Like “This
paper argues that early intervention can prevent suicide if done
correctly.”
WORKING THESIS
Suicide has negatively affected the society, and unless there are
mitigation strategies to curb this menace, it will continue to
take the lives of many people in the society.
EXPLANATION
Suicide is the act of human beings voluntarily taking their lives.
Research has shown that it has always been caused by a sense of
despair or hopelessness. All these issues may be induced by
mental illness which may include Bipolar disorder or even
depression. Suicide has been traumatizing and shameful to the
bereaved families and many people in the society have always
viewed it as a cowardice way of taking one’s life. Many suicidal
persons have been haunted by their thoughts in many cases this
is depicted as a very personal process (Goldsmith, Pellmar,
Kleinman & Bunney, 2002).

3. In this paper, it is very much possible to look at what suicide is
and the risk factors associated with suicide. A study conducted
in Sweden consisting of 271 men aged 15 years and above
revealed that mental disorder is a major suicide risk factor. It is
thus recommended that the research paper will dwell on mental
disorder and substance abuse as risk factors that contribute to
suicide as well as medical conditions and psychosocial states.
Harris & Barraclough (2009) also established a causal
relationship between mental disorder and suicide a factor that
further makes the proposed research relevant.
The media and how it depicts suicide is also very important to
research on as well as the rational suicide is a controversial
statement in this topic. We will have the chance to look at the
suicide methods and pathophysiology which is very important to
note. After all these, prevention will be a key topic to note
which involves screening for mental illness. It will also be
possible to research on epidemiology, social and culture based
on legislation and religious views and all about philosophy,
advocacy, locations and some notable cases of suicide.
SUB POINTS
Many people in the society are very much scared of taking away
their lives and they are actually left to wonder how one can
voluntarily manage to be suicidal. Some may be caused by
illnesses with some visible symptoms and various ways to
mitigate this act is by careful observation of these people.
People in high risk of committing suicide often have mood
disorders and loss of appetite ad if one is able to share his/her
suicidal thoughts, then they should be well listened to so that
they can be taken for counseling (Waern, Rubenowitz, Runeson,
Skoog, Wilhelmson & Allebeck, 2002).
People commit suicide every day in the world and one of the big
reasons is family problems like children who are abused and
neglected. If one does not get the necessary help, then they can
proceed to commit suicide if communications with others
become futile. People who feel neglected get confused and most
of them resort to suicide due to social isolation. Some may want

4. to rebel against their family and decide to take away their lives.
The areas where there is need to do research to fill my
knowledge are the religious views on suicide as well as
legislation based on culture and social perspectives of different
societies.
POSSIBLE OBJECTIONS
Moral objections to suicide include the counteraction of suicide
in patients with cluster B psychopathology. Most of them are
prone to suicidal behavior and protective mechanisms have not
yet been outlined to prevent this. Investigation to protective
role of moral objections to suicide is therefore very important in
this research question. My position in suicide is that research be
conducted on mentally ill persons to prevent the alarming rates
of suicide in the society. My position on suicide is that, people
should never view suicide as the last resort due to family
problems and cases of depression. It is therefore important for
relevant authorities to actually come forward to prevent such
case in any way possible (Waern, Rubenowitz, Runeson, Skoog,
Wilhelmson & Allebeck, 2002). Comment by Spencer
Ellsworth: This was a little bit confusing to me. Comment by
Spencer Ellsworth: Most people take this position—make your
position more about the need for proper intervention.
RESPONSE TO OBJECTIONS
I would therefore like to regard such objections as demeanors
since I would like to work with a psychology student and
professors to plan for interviews in research and help in
analysis of the results. It is important to be ambitious in this
research paper in order to help the society reduce such cases
which bring sadness to the community.

5. ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY
Beskow, J. (2008). Suicide and mental disorder in Swedish men.
Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica.
Mental disorder and suicide are at the epicenter of this material
making it a requisite to for this research problem. It boasts of
rigorous study conducted in 271 men above the age of 15 years
in Sweden. The uniqueness of this source its use of interviews
among other methods of collecting data as well as use of a
control group during the period of study for precise inferences.
The mode of study is another thing that strongly recommends
usage of this material in related research problems as it
broadened the scope to include both rural and urban settings.
The master stroke in this material is inform of the 70 to 95 rate
of predictability of subjects of the study making it stand out as
capable of setting up this research on course to effectively
tackle the research problem. The credibility of this source is
further enhancing by its recommendation by the American
Psychological Association (APA). The defining aspect of this
source is the uniqueness with which research was conducted
safeguarding against confounder variable. Findings of the
research strongly support its hypothesis.
Harris, E. C., & Barraclough, B. (2009). Suicide as an outcome
for mental disorders. A meta-analysis. The British Journal of
Psychiatry, 170(3), 205-228.
This source analytically looked at the causal relationship
between mental disorder and suicide making it the ideal
material for referencing in this research problem. It employed
the analysis of 249 reports pertaining mental health and suicide
and the materials used covered a big period of time making the
conclusion a true representative of the topic of study. It was
compiled through a thorough study of mental disorders such as
epilepsies among others and there correlation to suicide.
Research in this material was conducted over a long period of
time and consistency of its finding to hypothesis of the study

6. serve to highlight the professionalism with which it was
conducted. Its wide scope due to long period of time gives it
edge over other materials. Despite the lengthy period of
research, the findings strongly supported hypothesis established
at the start.
King, M., Semlyen, J., Tai, S. S., Killaspy, H., Osborn, D.,
Popelyuk, D., & Nazareth, I. (2008). A systematic review of
mental disorder, suicide, and deliberate self-harm in lesbian,
gay and bisexual people. BMC Psychiatry, 8(1), 1.
The writers contacted an extensive method of research which
encompassed the indulgence of other renown scholars who have
written in the past regarding the same, incorporated rigorous
methods from the social sciences as well as compilation of
materials written between 1966 and 2005 about the research
problem. It makes this source ooze with requisite knowledge for
the effective compilation of this research paper. It is very
relevant to the research problem as it entailed engaging
materials touching on persons with mental disorder and suicide.
The conclusion of this work is a genuine picture of the study
question as the extensive method of research employed nullified
the possibility of confounder variables influencing its outcome.
What set it out from other materials are the numerous methods
employed in conducting research and therefore helping to
reinforce the causal relationship between the variables of study
by limiting weaknesses of individual methods.
Waern, M., Rubenowitz, E., Runeson, B., Skoog, I.,
Wilhelmson, K., & Allebeck, P. (2002). Burden of illness and
suicide in elderly people: case-control study. Bmj, 324(7350),
1355.
The authors of the above article give a report of research that
was carried with an objective of establishing the relationship
between physical illness and suicide amongst the elderly people
in the society. Data for the study was collected by interviewing
the relatives of the elderly people who had committed suicide.
The study revealed that physical illnesses such as visual
impairment and neurosurgical disorders increased the risk of

7. committing suicide amongst the elderly. The findings of the
study are relevant for this study as it helps in giving relevant
information as regards risk factors of suicide amongst the
elderly.
Goldsmith, S. K., Pellmar, T. C., Kleinman, A. M., & Bunney,
W. E. (2002). Reducing suicide: a national imperative. National
Academies Press.
The above book discusses the factors that increase the risk of
suicide. The risk factors of suicide are categorized into
psychological, social and economic factors making the book
reliable for this research. Information contained in the book is
helpful in the sense that it helps to categorize the risk factors of
suicide into the various categories aforementioned.
Jamie,
Fantastic work! Very very good, focused and professional
writing. I marked a few micro-critiques in the attachment. As
far as a macro critique, you end by stating your moral position
on suicide, but you’re writing for an academic audience that
will share that value; rather, you should keep your argument
focused on the best methods for intervention. You don’t need to
convince anyone in your audience that suicide is a bad thing.
You do need to convince them of the right methods of
intervention. Many more comments and helpful things in the
attachment.
Assignment 2 Grading Criteria
Maximum Points
Presented a working abstract which includes a correctly-formed
thesis.
25/30
Revised proposal is presented in a final form, complete with in-
text citations which correspond with the sources in the
bibliography.
38/38
Bibliography is presented in a final form, with additional source
material, and only sources useful to the paper.

8. 40/40
Components have been presented in the correct APA style
according to the directions detailed in the lectures.
· APA style title/cover page.
· In-text citations use author and date of publication in
parentheses after the sentence and before end-of-sentence
punctuation.
· Book sources cite the author, date of publication, publishing
house, and location of publisher.
· Periodical sources cite author, date of publication, volume
number, issue number, and page number.
· Web sources cite author, date of publication, and URL.
32/32
Paper meets length and elaboration requirements (5 pages
minimum)
20/20
Usage and Mechanics: Grammar, Spelling, Sentence Structure
20/20
Style: Audience, Voice, Word Choice
20/20
Total:
195/200
Running Head: MEDICAL MARIJUANA 2