“…Indeed, recent evidence shows that the lives of at least six people are intimately and directly changed forever due to bereavement by suicide, and not less than 135 people are affected by the exposure to each suicide...” ~ Excerpt from Prof. Charity Sylvia Akotia’s abstract.
The University community is reminded to attend the Inaugural Lecture by Prof. Charity Sylvia Akotia (Former Dean of the School of Social Sciences) for the detailed account.
Please see further details of the Lecture below:
Topic: When Life Becomes Unbearable: Dynamics and Complexities of Suicidal Behaviour and Prevention in a Cultural Context
Date: Thursday, March 9, 2023
Time: 5:00 p.m.
Venue: Great Hall, University of Ghana, Legon
Chairperson: Prof. Nana Aba Appiah Amfo, Vice-Chancellor, University of Ghana
ABSTRACT
Life comes with several challenges such as the loss of a loved one, embarrassment, disgrace, inability to provide for one’s family, relationship problems, feelings of hopelessness and helplessness, and illness. Most people cope effectively with these challenges and then they move on with life. However, for a few, the challenges may be so overwhelming and daunting that they are unable to make decisions that are helpful or functional to deal effectively with the problems. When some people feel overwhelmed with challenges, with no viable options, they contemplate suicide, perceiving suicide as the only option they have out of the challenges.
Suicide (defined as the act of killing oneself) is considered a public health issue in many countries including Ghana. According to the World Health Organization (2021), globally, about 700,000 people take their lives every year, and for every suicidal death, there are at least 20 suicide attempts. This is alarming because suicide does not only affect the individual involved in the act but also affects families, significant others, and entire communities. Indeed, recent evidence shows that the lives of at least six people are intimately and directly changed forever due to bereavement by suicide, and not less than 135 people are affected by the exposure to each suicide. Suicide thus constitutes a social injury. Schneidman (1993) indicated that the suicidal person must be understood as being in a state of complicated crisis based on psychological needs. What is already known about suicide in terms of statistics is a just a tip of the iceberg. Suicidal behaviour is a complex, multi-factorial behaviour which is influenced by social, biological, cultural, and psychological factors making the behaviour somewhat enigmatic. The complexity of suicide, coupled with the dearth of research-informed evidence, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, makes its prevention challenging but not entirely impossible to tackle. Arguably, there is relatively more research conducted in the High-Income Countries (HICs) than in Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs). There is the common belief that the suicide rate is low in the LMICs. This belief is likely motivated by the high number of deaths caused by communicable diseases and malnutrition compared to suicide. Generally, suicide is underreported in LMICs (Vijayakumar et al. 2005) and there are several reasons that explain this, including suicide taboos and the criminalization of suicide attempts. Statistics from the WHO mortality database indicates that there are relatively higher numbers of suicides in LMICs than in non-LMICs (WHO, 2014). In spite of this, our understanding about suicidal behaviour is based mainly on research from high-income countries, making it uncertain which particular factors influence suicide in LMICs.
Suicide and suicidal behavior are influenced largely by factors such as age, socioeconomic status, sex, and culture. Of these, culture seems to be the most significant factor influencing suicide. Scholars have therefore argued for suicidal behaviour to be studied from a cultural perspective. Thus, cultural factors such as religion, attitudes, perceptions, and stigma have been dominant in suicide research and have shaped how suicide is perceived, understood, and handled (including intervention activities).
In this lecture, I discuss my motivation for researching on suicidal behaviour and its prevention. I then discuss the literature and statistics on suicide and the dynamics and complexities of suicidal behaviour. Next, I demonstrate the importance of the role played by culture in understanding suicidal behaviour and argue that no suicide research will be complete without the consideration of culture. Drawing on two decades of research I have conducted on attitudes, perceptions, reasons, and motivations for suicide, I provide evidence-based information on suicidal behaviour in Ghana. Finally, from a social and community psychology perspective, I draw conclusions and provide recommendations to guide prevention work on suicidal behaviour in Ghana.
PROFILE
Education
Professor Charity Sylvia Akotia is a Social/Community Psychologist by training and has about three decades’ experience in teaching, research, and extension service. She grew up in many towns and cities, as her parents were both educationists.
She started her basic education at the Evangelical Presbyterian Primary School in Kwamekrom, Volta Region (now Oti Region), where her parents were posted to teach. She passed the Common Entrance Examination at the age of 11 years and proceeded to Nkonya Secondary School, also in the Oti Region, for her “O” Level education. She later enrolled at Kpando Secondary School for her sixth form education and completed in 1982. In that same year, she gained admission to the University of Ghana to read a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology and Russian. She successfully graduated with a Bachelor of Arts (Hons) degree in Psychology and Russian.
After her national service, she gained admission to pursue a Master of Arts degree in Community Psychology at Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. She successfully completed her programme and graduated in April 1992, four months before the scheduled time of graduation.
Academic and Administrative Roles
In October 1992, she was appointed as lecturer at the Department of Psychology, University of Ghana. In 1998, she enrolled in a part-time doctoral programme at the Department of Psychology, University of Ghana and was the first to have graduated at the Department in 2004. She was promoted to the rank of Senior lecturer in 1998, Associate Professor in 2013 and Professor in October 2020.
Professor Akotia is the founding Dean and the first female Dean of the School of Social Sciences, College of Humanities, University of Ghana (from 2014 to 2020). As the Founding Dean of the School of Social Sciences, she created a conducive environment for effective learning and teaching to take place.
Considering the strategic objectives of the School of Social Sciences and that of the University of Ghana in general, she initiated a number of programmes to boost the image of the School. The School’s International Conference which became its flagship programme in the calendar of the School of Social Sciences is worth mentioning. This conference was sought after by both local and international scientists and researchers on yearly basis. Other programmes include the Student-Industry-Meeting Day (SIM Day), where resource persons from industry were invited to interact with students in the School; training workshops for non-teaching staff, Social Scientist Seminar Series, School Week, and many more. During her tenure as Dean, she also introduced the first School cloth for students, faculty and non-teaching staff.
Prior to being appointed as Dean of the School of Social Sciences, she served as Head of the Department of Psychology for two terms. Her work as Head of Department was sterling, as she has helped introduce numerous programmes in the Department of Psychology. Professor Akotia is currently back to the Department of Psychology, University of Ghana where she coordinates the Social and Community Psychology Programme at the postgraduate level. She is currently the Chairperson of the Graduate Committee at the Department of Psychology.
Research
As a Social and Community Psychologist, Professor Akotia’s main research focuses on suicide and suicide prevention. She has collaborated widely with several academics across the globe. Her main collaborators include Professor Birthe Loa Knizek, and Professor Heidi Marie Hjelmeland both from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Trondheim, Norway; Professor Eugene Kinyanda, MRC, Uganda; Professor Joseph Osafo, Dr. Johnny Andoh-Arthur, Dr. Emmanuel Nii-Boye Quarshie, all of the Department of Psychology, University of Ghana, Legon; and Dr. Winifred Asare-Doku, and Dr. Jennifer Peprah, currently in Australia. Professor Akotia’s publications have appeared in refereed peer-reviewed journals including BMC Public Health; Psychological Studies; Transcultural Psychiatry; Journal of Civil Society; Journal of Psychology in Africa; International Journal of Nursing Studies; Social Psychological and Personality Science; International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology; SAGE Open; BMC Psychiatry; Journal of Child Sexual Abuse; Death Studies; International Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health and Well-being; Journal of Community Psychology; Crisis, Mental Health, Religion and Culture; Journal of Religion and Health among others.
Her research on suicidal behaviour is seminal and contributes to knowledge and the understanding of suicidal behaviour in a cultural context more generally. Aside suicide research, Professor Akotia has also published on gender and gender role attitudes. She has to her credit three edited books, eight book chapters, fifty-five journal articles and one technical report. She has participated in over sixty conferences/workshops and seminars across the globe. The overarching goal guiding her research on suicidal behaviour is to first, understand the complex issues that suicidal behaviour presents and secondly, to initiate suicide prevention programmes to help persons who are in suicidal crisis. She is currently engaged in research on the conceptualization of personhood in an African context, a research project sponsored by the Mellon Foundation. She is also collaborating with colleagues from the University of Konstanz, Germany, and nine other universities on the psychology of eating behaviour.
Teaching
Professor Akotia loves teaching. She was a Teaching and Research Assistant during her Master’s programme at Wilfrid Laurier University in Canada where she provided tutorials to undergraduate students. At the Department of Psychology, University of Ghana, she has taught several courses including Elements of Psychology, Introduction to Psychology, Motivation and Emotion, Developmental Psychology, Social Psychology and Community Psychology. Currently, she teaches Community Psychology at the undergraduate level, and Research Methods, Contemporary Issues in Social psychology, and Social Psychology of Gender at the postgraduate level. To date, she has successfully supervised and/or co-supervised 15 PhD dissertations, 52 MPhil theses and over 400 BA students’ long essays. Her scholarly services extend beyond the borders of University of Ghana, as she serves as assessor and/or external examiner to other institutions including University of Cape Coast, University of Education at Winneba, Stellenbosch University, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), University of Nairobi, and Central University, Ghana.
Mentorship
Professor Akotia is a staunch believer in mentorship. It comes as no surprise that as Dean of the School of Social Sciences, she introduced an award for Mentorship for faculty. Over the years, she has provided mentorship to many of her students, particularly graduate students. Today, many of these students have either completed their postgraduate programmes or are in graduate school. Many have also found themselves in lectureship positions in various academic institutions including the University of Ghana.
Boards/Committees Membership
Professor Akotia has served on numerous Boards and Committees at the University of Ghana and has chaired the School of Social Sciences Management Committee, Senior /Junior Staff Appointments and Promotions Committee, College of Humanities, Examination Malpractices Committee, Supplementary Re-sit Examinations Committee, College of Humanities, and Panel to Conduct Appraisal of the Chartering of Catholic University College, Fiapre.
She has also been a member of the Business Executive Committee (BEC), Examinations Superintending Committee, Examination Malpractices Committee, College of Humanities Representative on Research, Innovation and Development (RID) Management Board, College of Humanities Academic Board, Academic Quality Assurance Committee, Vice Chancellor’s Committee - Medical/Dentistry Expansion Team, University of Ghana Academic Board, Various Search Panels for Senior Administrative Positions, Panel to Conduct Appraisal of the Chartering of Methodist University College, Panel to Conduct Appraisal of the Chartering of Pentecost University as well as College of Humanities Representative on the Counselling and Placement Board. She was also the University of Ghana’s representative on the Presbyterian University Appointments and Promotions Committee.
She currently chairs the Implementation team of the Kumasi and Takoradi City Campuses of University of Ghana. As Chair of this Committee, Professor Akotia, together with her Team members, continue to work hard to lay the foundation for a successful implementation of the City Campuses.
She is currently a member of the Executive Committee, International Association for Suicide Prevention (IASP), the National Representative and a Co-Chair of the Council of National Representatives of IASP. As co-Chair of the Council, she is responsible for three of the four Zones as demarcated by IASP.
Advisory Boards and Professional Association Membership
Professor Akotia has also served on international Advisory Boards including being a member of the Advisory Board for the EQUAL Seed Grant, New York University (NYU) and Member of the Scientific Advisory Board of the Health in Context Project (HEIKO), NTNU, Trondheim, Norway. Charity Akotia belongs to Professional Associations including the International Association for Suicide Prevention (IASP), Ghana Psychological Association (GPA), Ghana Psychological Council, Ghana Association for Suicide Prevention (GASP), and Critical Suicidology.
Family
Professor Akotia comes from Hohoe in the Volta Region and is the fourth of six children born to Mr. Emmanuel Baete Alovor and Mrs. Mary Semanu Alovor (both deceased). Together with her husband, Mr. Mathias Akotia (of blessed memory) they have four boys: Dennis, Steven, Nigel, and Michael. She fellowships with The Church in Accra and her strong faith in God guides her living. During her leisure hours, Professor Akotia enjoys listening to music and she also loves dancing.
