Possible relationship of elderly suicide rates with unemployment in society: a cross-national study

Psychol Rep. 2008 Apr;102(2):398-400. doi: 10.2466/pr0.102.2.398-400.

Abstract

Analyses of individual and aggregated data have yielded an association between suicide and unemployment, particularly for men in younger age groups. Examination of the relationship of elderly suicide rates with measures of unemployment in a cross-national study of 27 countries did not produce any statistically significant association between these two variables. Also, the magnitude of the actual correlations was small. One reason for low magnitude of correlations may be better welfare systems in the studied countries which mainly reported medium and high income.

MeSH terms

  • Age Distribution
  • Age Factors
  • Aged
  • Cross-Cultural Comparison*
  • Data Interpretation, Statistical
  • Global Health
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Sex Factors
  • Social Conditions / statistics & numerical data
  • Suicide / statistics & numerical data*
  • Unemployment / statistics & numerical data*
  • United Nations / statistics & numerical data