Adolescent Couple Suicide: Literature Review

Abstract

A suicide pact is a mutual arrangement between two people to kill themselves at the same time, usually in the same place. A summary of the highlights from a literature survey on suicide pacts with a major focus on high risk factors is presented in this paper. The victims of suicide pacts are usually the spouses over age 50. The instigator is usually a depressed male with a history of self-destructive behaviour. In many cases the presence of an overdependent relationship, and a threat to the maintenance of closeness are strongly associated with the attempt. Since there were no adolescent couple suicide pacts in the literature, a case of a serious adolescent couple suicide attempt assessed and treated by the authors is reported here. The dynamics of this case are compared to the findings, the studies and case reports on adult suicide pacts.