STAVOVI ADOLESCENATA O SAMOUBISTVU.

Introduction. Having a relatively high suicide rate of 19.5 per 100.000 inhabitants, the Republic of Serbia is in the first half on the list of the European countries concerning the number of suicides. However, the situation is particularly alarming in Vojvodina, which has been one of the areas with a very high population mortality rate caused by suicide for a long period of time not only in Serbia of nowadays, but also in former Yugoslavia. The number of suicides has increased by almost 50% over the last five and a half decades, and every eighth suicide was committed by a young person. The aim of this paper was to explore adolescents' attitudes towards suicide and to find out whether the difference in age affects changes in attitudes regarding suicide. Material and Methods. The George Domino's Suicide Opinion Questionnaire was completed by 254 adolescents divided into two age groups - 124 respondents were in the age group 13 to 15 and 130 of them in the age group 18 to 19. Results. The results of this study suggest that the attitudes of younger and older group of adolescents towards suicide mostly coincide and there is no statistically significant difference in the answers according to the analyzed clusters. Conclusion. This research shows that the attitudes of respondents of both age groups indicate a lack of awareness about suicide, its causes and dynamics of development of this public health problem. This leaves space for more intensive educational work in the mental health of the population, especially young people and for further research of the suicide problem as a basis for developing strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]