Social work research on African Americans and suicidal behavior: a systematic 25-year review

Suicide among African Americans is a neglected topic. Social workers practice in both clinical and nonclinical settings, and as the largest occupational group of mental health professionals, they have a unique opportunity to reach this underserved group. However, little is known about social work's empirical knowledge base for recognition and treatment of suicidal behavior among African Americans. The authors performed a systematic critical review of published articles by social workers on African American suicide and suicidal behavior, to ascertain the state of social worker's contribution to and knowledge of suicide risk factors and effective treatments. They conducted Web-based (for example, Social Work Abstracts, PsycINFO, PubMed, JSTOR) and manual searches of suicide research conducted by social work investigators and published in peer-reviewed journals from 1980 to 2005. References cited in the articles were used to identify candidate articles. According to the search results, social workers contributed only 11 empirical research articles focusing on African American suicide or nonfatal suicidal behavior. Risk factors for suicide are reviewed, and the implications for clinical social work practice and research are addressed.