What was the main focus of Emile Durkheim’s study of suicide?

Emile Durkheim’s study of suicide primarily emphasized the role of social factors in influencing rates of suicide, particularly through the concept of social integration and social regulation. Durkheim argued that the degree to which individuals are integrated into their social groups has a significant impact on their likelihood of committing suicide. He identified different types of suicide based on social contexts, such as egoistic suicide, which occurs when individuals feel detached from society, and altruistic suicide, which happens when individuals are overly integrated into their social groups.

By highlighting the concept of social control, Durkheim showed that strong social ties can act as protective factors against suicide, while weak social ties can increase vulnerability. Thus, his work illustrates that rather than purely psychological or economic factors, it is the social environment and the degree of social cohesion that play critical roles in understanding suicide rates. This approach helped establish sociology as a discipline distinct from psychology and highlighted the importance of studying social phenomena in their societal context.