Suicide at work: How can this relationship be demonstrated? Action research in a public agency with legal activity

Abstract

Background: Understanding the importance of work in mental health-illness processes is crucial for developing changes before pathogenic distress, psychological disorders, psychopathologies, suicide, and severe and complex issues affecting people who work in the same Agency. In Brazil, data from the National Institute of Social Security (INSS) show that mental illnesses are the third cause (12.34% of the total) of removals among workers with employment contracts. Objective: To highlight how work can trigger pathogenic distress, psychopathologies, and suicide in a specific institutional context. Methods: Action research referenced in the Work Psychodynamics theory and method is conducted in a public agency with legal activity. Following the third suicide among prosecutors, the Agency sought mental health and work experts to understand the problem and receive support for possible organizational changes. In 2021, two reflection groups of eleven people were organized on the work with prosecutors coordinated by the researchers, resulting in four meetings, totaling eight hours per group. Then, researchers wrote a summary report based on discussions in the two groups, validated with the participants, which represents the primary data source for this article. Results: High work volume to conclude decisions, tight deadlines, little cooperation among peers, and scarce exchange venues, produce loneliness, fear of punishment in case of mistakes and loss of control over the stock of cases, experienced as losing self-control. Conclusions: Excessive work, time constraints, and the lack of clear rules on work evaluation and work organization aspects favor or aggravate pathogenic distress and lead to suicide in the workplace.