ATTITUDES TOWARD SUICIDE - ITALIAN AND UNITED-STATES PHYSICIANS

The Suicide Opinion Questionnaire was administered to 100 Italian and 100 United States physicians, comparable in age, gender, and medical field. Significant differences were obtained on seven of the eight SOQ scales, with Italian physicians showing greater agreement on the mental illness, right to die, religion, impulsivity, normality, aggression, and moral evil scales. Gender differences were obtained in both samples, with males scoring higher. These results are discussed in terms of cultural differences, especially the role of Catholicism.