scholarly journals Self-inflicted. Deliberate. Death-intentioned. A critical policy analysis of UK suicide prevention policies 2009-2019

2022 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hazel Marzetti ◽  
Alexander Oaten ◽  
Amy Chandler ◽  
Ana Jordan
Keyword(s):  
Policy Analysis ◽  
Suicide Prevention ◽  
World Health Organisation ◽  
World Health ◽  
Prevention Policy ◽  
Critical Policy Analysis ◽  
Policy Documents ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Prevention Policies ◽  
Critical Policy

Purpose With encouragement from the World Health Organisation, national suicide prevention policies have come to be regarded as an essential component of the global effort to reduce suicide. However, despite their global significance, the construction, conceptualisation and proposed provisions offered in suicide prevention policies have, to date, been under researched; this study aims to address this gap. Design/methodology/approach we critically analysed eight contemporary UK suicide prevention policy documents in use in all four nations of the UK between 2009 and 2019, using Bacchi and Goodwin’s post-structural critical policy analysis. Findings The authors argue that across this sample of suicide prevention policies, suicide is constructed as self-inflicted, deliberate and death-intentioned. Consequently, these supposedly neutral definitions of suicide have some significant and problematic effects, often individualising, pathologising and depoliticising suicide in ways that dislocate suicides from the emotional worlds in which they occur. Accordingly, although suicide prevention policies have the potential to think beyond the boundaries of clinical practice, and consider suicide prevention more holistically, the policies in this sample take a relatively narrow focus, often reducing suicide to a single momentary act and centring death prevention at the expense of considering ways to make individual lives more liveable. Originality/value UK suicide prevention policies have not been subject to critical analysis; to the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study represents the first attempt to examine the way in which suicide is constructed in UK suicide prevention policy documents.

scholarly journals A critical discourse problematization framework for (disability) policy analysis

2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 185-198
Author(s):  
Jennifer Van Aswegen ◽  
David Hyatt ◽  
Dan Goodley
Keyword(s):  
Discourse Analysis ◽  
Policy Analysis ◽  
Critical Discourse Analysis ◽  
Policy Development ◽  
Critical Discourse ◽  
Disability Policy ◽  
Critical Policy Analysis ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Critical Policy ◽  
Analytical Tools

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to present a composite framework for critical policy analysis drawing from discourse analysis and post-structuralist analysis. Drawing on an interpretive paradigm (Yanow, 2014), this paper provides a thick description (Geertz, 1973) of the processes involved in the application of these tools in a critical policy analysis project, focusing on disability policy within the Irish context. Methodologically, this is a resourceful cross-fertilization of analytical tools to interrogate policy, highlighting its potential within critical disability policy analysis and beyond. Design/methodology/approach Merging a critical discourse analysis framework and a policy problematization approach, the combination of tools presented here, along with their associated processes, is referred to as the critical discourse problematization framework. Findings Potentially, the framework can also be employed across a number of cognate social policy fields including education, welfare and social justice. Practical implications The value of this paper lies in its potential to be used within analytical practice in the field of critical (disability) policy work by offering an evaluation of the analytical tools and theoretical framework deployed and modeled across an entire research process. Social implications The framework has the potential and has been used successfully as a tool for disability activism to influence policy development. Originality/value The analytical framework presented here is a methodically innovative approach to the study of policy analysis, marrying two distinct analytical tools to form a composite framework for the study of policy text.

scholarly journals Training school teachers in Malawi about substance misuse and trauma: the need for a sustainable strategy

2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (6) ◽  
pp. 480-488
Author(s):  
Nicola Evans ◽  
Rhiannon Lane ◽  
Gemma Stacey-Emile ◽  
Anthony Sefasi
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Health Care ◽  
Mental Health Care ◽  
Substance Misuse ◽  
World Health Organisation ◽  
World Health ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Sustainable Improvement ◽  
Post Measure ◽  
Health Need

Purpose The World Health Organisation found depression to be the fourth leading cause of disability in Malawi (Bowie, 2006) with the prevalence of mental health need in children and young people in Malawi estimated between 10 and 30% (Kutcher et al., 2019). One option to address this was to provide schoolteachers with skills and knowledge related to mental health so they can better support children. There is generally a lack of evidence of the utility or feasibility of school-based mental health literacy programmes in low to medium income countries (LMIC). This paper aims to report on a project to train schoolteachers in Malawi on aspects of mental health. Design/methodology/approach The aim of this project was to determine the acceptability and feasibility of delivering a training initiative in Malawi to teachers to better enable them to recognise and cope with school children who had been exposed to trauma and substance misuse. Findings Feedback was generated through the use of a specifically designed pre and post measure, focus groups, interviews and observations of the teaching delivery. Practical implications Teachers found the training built on their existing knowledge and they requested further opportunities for training and consultation about how to manage difficult presentations. It was evident that teachers did not know how to access mental health care or support for children whose needs could not be met by schoolteachers alone. Originality/value For a sustainable improvement for children’s mental health care in this context, further training becomes valuable when located as part of a network of joined up health and educational services.

White Gazes of Black Detroit: Milliken v. Bradley I, Postcolonial Theory, and Persistent Inequalities

2016 ◽  
Vol 118 (3) ◽  
pp. 1-34
Author(s):  
Muhammad Khalifa ◽  
Ty-Ron M. O. Douglas ◽  
Terah Venzant Chambers
Keyword(s):  
Policy Analysis ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Postcolonial Theory ◽  
Black Communities ◽  
Court Case ◽  
Predominantly Black ◽  
Critical Policy Analysis ◽  
White American ◽  
Legal Literature ◽  
Critical Policy

Background/Context This article employs critical policy analysis as it examines the historical underpinnings of racialized policy discrimination in Detroit. It considers histories, discourses, and oppressive structures as it seeks to understand how policies have been and currently are implemented by Whites in predominantly Black urban areas. Focus of Study As we seek to understand how policy is constructed in relationship to predominantly Black communities, we argue that White actions toward Detroit are based on deep-rooted and historical biases, stereotypes, and fears of Blacks. Research Design We used critical policy analysis around the famed Milliken v. Bradley (1974) Supreme Court case to explore 20th century White American behaviors and policy regarding Black urban spaces, specifically in Detroit. Data Collection and Analysis We pull from political, educational, and legal literature surrounding Milliken I and critically examine prior research and policies related to the case. Conclusions/Recommendations Our analysis suggests that Milliken had a long-term deleterious impact on Black students (and families) in the city of Detroit, including the resegregation of separate and inequitable schools and the (re)entrenchment of White fears and stereotypes about Black Detroiters.

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