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How school counsellors cope with suicide attempts among adolescents — A qualitative study in Israel

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 June 2020

Inbar Levkovich Open the ORCID record for Inbar Levkovich [Opens in a new window]  and
Ina Vigdor
Inbar Levkovich*
Affiliation:
Faculty of Graduate Studies, Oranim Academic College of Education, Kiryat Tiv’on, Israel
Ina Vigdor
Affiliation:
Faculty of Graduate Studies, Oranim Academic College of Education, Kiryat Tiv’on, Israel
*
*Corresponding author. Email: inbar.lev2@gmail.com
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Abstract

The aim of the study was to examine how school counsellors cope with suicide attempts among students in their schools. A qualitative phenomenological methodology was used. Participants included 24 Israeli high school counsellors aged 32–62. All interviews were recorded, transcribed, and analysed thematically. The findings indicate that counsellors find students’ suicide attempts difficult, disconcerting, painful and confusing to manage, and note the complex nature of their dealings with the adolescents, their families and the school administrators. Despite feeling insecure about their ability to provide help, the counsellors felt they were at the forefront of the treatment effort in the school environment. To cope with the responsibility and challenges, the counsellors relied mainly on informal sources of support. Implications for practice are discussed.

Keywords

suicide attemptschool counsellorsadolescentsqualitative study
Type
Articles
Information
Journal of Psychologists and Counsellors in Schools , Volume 31 , Issue 1 , June 2021 , pp. 63 - 75
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Copyright
© The Author(s) 2020. Published by Cambridge University Press

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