Distress Behaviour: a Study of Selected Samaritan Clients and Parasuicides (‘Attempted Suicide’ Patients)

Abstract

This paper represents part of a study into what determines the action taken by individuals in distress. More specifically we were concerned to elucidate why some people attempt to find relief by seeking support and guidance from an appropriate agency, while others resort to self-aggressive behaviour. Two groups of subjects have been investigated, one consisting of certain clients seeking help from the Telephone Samaritans organization, while the other comprises patients who had engaged in acts generally described as ‘attempted suicide’ but better termed ‘parasuicide’ (Kreitman et al., 1969) or ‘deliberate self-poisoning or self-injury’ (Kessel, 1965).