Within late 20th-century industrial societies suicide among the young and elderly has increased. Drawing from psychology, social psychology and sociology, the author looks at the issued surrounding the topic: reasons for suicide and the process of becoming suicidal; reactions to suicidal behaviour; the responses of the medical profession; preventing repeated attempts at suicide; the individual and their relationship to family and society; and the pattern of relationships. The author suggests that behaviour is not understood when it is isolated from social systemic contexts. Suicidal behaviour is often regarded as "impulsive". However, perhaps such behaviour only appears impulsive when regarded by an observer without a satisfactory theoretical understanding of such acts. The book attempts to show how persons who are suicidal make sense of what they do.