Social Factors in Suicide

The study objective was to investigate the age-related variation of social factors in suicide. Age-related variations in marital status, living arrangements, employment and social interaction were investigated in an entire 12-month suicide population in Finland (n = 1067); these findings were compar...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:British journal of psychiatry 1995-12, Vol.167 (6), p.747-753
Main Authors: Heikkinen, Martti E., Isometsä, Erkki T., Marttunen, Mauri J., Aro, Hillevi M., Lönnqvist, Jouko K.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescent
Adult
Age
Age differences
Age Factors
Age groups
Aged
Aged, 80 and over
Alcohol
Alcohol use
Alcoholism
Censuses
Child
Employment
Female
Finland - epidemiology
Humans
Living alone
Living arrangements
Male
Males
Marital Status
Marriage
Middle age
Middle Aged
Parents & parenting
Psychopathology
Risk Factors
Sex differences
Sex Factors
Social Environment
Social factors
Social interaction
Suicide
Suicide - statistics & numerical data
Suicides & suicide attempts
Variation
Victims
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Summary:The study objective was to investigate the age-related variation of social factors in suicide. Age-related variations in marital status, living arrangements, employment and social interaction were investigated in an entire 12-month suicide population in Finland (n = 1067); these findings were compared with appropriate census data. Several social factors varied across age groups among suicides, with some age-related sex differences. Compared with the general population, the suicides were more commonly never married (especially men aged 30-39 years), divorced, and widowed (especially women aged 60-69 years); living alone was more frequent among the suicides, as was living with parents among male suicides aged 25-39 years. A history of psychiatric admission was especially common among young male suicides who had never married or were living with parents. Living alone was particularly frequent among middle-aged male suicides who had misused alcohol. While most of the age-related variation in social factors found in suicide seems to parallel the natural variation of these factors in the general population, some social findings in suicide might be related to the victims' psychopathology and excessive alcohol use.
ISSN:0007-1250
1472-1465
DOI:10.1192/bjp.167.6.747