Raising the voices and experiences of Indigenous parents to create culturally relevant responses to youth suicide

dc.contributor.authorStill, Marni
dc.contributor.examiningcommitteeAzure, Ed (Social Work Indigenous Knowledge Holder) Flaherty, Maureen (Peace and Conflict Studies)en_US
dc.contributor.supervisorDennis, Mary Kate (Social Work)en_US
dc.date.accessioned2020-08-26T19:04:56Z
dc.date.available2020-08-26T19:04:56Z
dc.date.copyright2020-08-21
dc.date.issued2020en_US
dc.date.submitted2020-08-21T16:47:23Zen_US
dc.degree.disciplineSocial Worken_US
dc.degree.levelMaster of Social Work (M.S.W.)en_US
dc.description.abstractIndigenous youth suicide is very complex due to the lasting affects colonization has on the social, psychological, biological, environmental, economic, familial and structural factors that influence Indigenous youth and their mental health. In Canada, our Western ways of interventions and prevention are not easily accessible, culturally relevant, or highly affective for Indigenous children and youth. As a result, more than 20% of deaths among Indigenous youth are from suicide and Indigenous youth are also four to six times more likely to die by suicide than non-Indigenous youth. Colonial factors such as family disconnect, loss and grief, substance abuse, and others, impact Indigenous youth’s mental health and in turn, suicide rates. There is a dearth of current research that includes the voices of parents, families, and communities directly affected by Indigenous youth suicide. This research gathered the experiences, stories, and knowledge of 8 Indigenous parents living in Manitoba who have lost a child to suicide or have had a child survive a suicide attempt. Through semi-structured interviews, their stories were thematically analyzed and organized with the intention of influencing future suicide preventions and interventions. The findings resulting from this study show how suicide effects not only Indigenous youth, but parents, families and communities and brings questions of ‘why’, immense feelings of loss and grief, shame and regret. Recommendations for policy, practice and research include: addressing colonial policies, increasing resource availability, incorporating spirituality and culture into interventions, decreasing stigma in communities, increasing training of practitioners and increasing research on culturally relevant factors that are preventative and that increase Indigenous community mental wellness.en_US
dc.description.noteOctober 2020en_US
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/1993/34891
dc.language.isoengen_US
dc.rightsopen accessen_US
dc.subjectSuicideen_US
dc.subjectYouthen_US
dc.subjectMental healthen_US
dc.subjectManitobaen_US
dc.subjectHistorical traumaen_US
dc.subjectCanadaen_US
dc.subjectSocial worken_US
dc.subjectIndigenousen_US
dc.titleRaising the voices and experiences of Indigenous parents to create culturally relevant responses to youth suicideen_US
dc.typemaster thesisen_US
local.subject.manitobayesen_US
Files
Original bundle
Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
Loading...
Thumbnail Image
Name:
Still_Marni.pdf
Size:
1.24 MB
Format:
Adobe Portable Document Format
Description:
License bundle
Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
Loading...
Thumbnail Image
Name:
license.txt
Size:
2.2 KB
Format:
Item-specific license agreed to upon submission
Description: