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Suicide and unemployment in Australia 1907-1990

Author

Listed:
  • Morrell, Stephen
  • Taylor, Richard
  • Quine, Susan
  • Kerr, Charles

Abstract

Ever since Durkheim postulated a relationship between economic change and suicide there has been evidence of a general association between aggregate data on unemployment and the frequency of suicide. Quantitatively, however, the association has been variable and it is clear that due to differing cultural, social and individual determinants of suicide, the relationship is complex. Methodological difficulties abound with interpretation of aggregate data. Australian records for most of the present century are suitable for examining secular trends in suicide and unemployment by age group and gender to gain an indication of the extent to which both parameters may be causally related. An aggregate/ecological study was designed to incorporate quantitative and qualitative strategies. Annual age-adjusted male and female suicide rates and annual unemployment rates were derived for the period 1907-1990. Female suicide rates were generally stable throughout the period, whereas those for males demostrated sharp fluctuations with the peaks coinciding with times of high unemployment. The association between suicide and unemployment for 15-24 year old males was comparatively high for the recent period, 1966-1990. The increasingly youthful contribution to male suicide was demonstrated by a rise in the loss of life years during 1973-1984. Despite the inability of any investigation based on aggregate data to establish an unequivocable causal relationship, no evidence was detected to suggest that relatively high population levels of unemployment were not related to the occurence of suicide.

Suggested Citation

  • Morrell, Stephen & Taylor, Richard & Quine, Susan & Kerr, Charles, 1993. "Suicide and unemployment in Australia 1907-1990," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 36(6), pages 749-756, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:36:y:1993:i:6:p:749-756
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Andrew Phiri & Doreen Mukuku, 2020. "Does unemployment aggravate suicide rates in South Africa? Some empirical evidence," Review of Social Economy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 78(4), pages 532-560, October.
    2. Chang, Shu-Sen & Gunnell, David & Sterne, Jonathan A.C. & Lu, Tsung-Hsueh & Cheng, Andrew T.A., 2009. "Was the economic crisis 1997-1998 responsible for rising suicide rates in East/Southeast Asia? A time-trend analysis for Japan, Hong Kong, South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore and Thailand," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 68(7), pages 1322-1331, April.
    3. Taylor, Richard & Page, Andrew & Morrell, Stephen & Harrison, James & Carter, Greg, 2005. "Mental health and socio-economic variations in Australian suicide," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 61(7), pages 1551-1559, October.
    4. Coope, Caroline & Gunnell, David & Hollingworth, William & Hawton, Keith & Kapur, Nav & Fearn, Vanessa & Wells, Claudia & Metcalfe, Chris, 2014. "Suicide and the 2008 economic recession: Who is most at risk? Trends in suicide rates in England and Wales 2001–2011," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 117(C), pages 76-85.
    5. Chen, Ying-Yeh & Yip, Paul S.F. & Lee, Carmen & Fan, Hsiang-Fang & Fu, King-Wa, 2010. "Economic fluctuations and suicide: A comparison of Taiwan and Hong Kong," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 71(12), pages 2083-2090, December.
    6. Tomoya Suzuki, 2008. "Economic Modelling Of Suicide Under Income Uncertainty: For Better Understanding Of Middle‐Aged Suicide," Australian Economic Papers, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 47(3), pages 296-310, September.
    7. Morrell, Stephen & Page, Andrew N. & Taylor, Richard J., 2007. "The decline in Australian young male suicide," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 64(3), pages 747-754, February.
    8. Lutter, Mark & Roex, Karlijn L.A. & Tisch, Daria, 2020. "Anomie or imitation? The Werther effect of celebrity suicides on suicide rates in 34 OECD countries, 1960–2014," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 246(C).
    9. Smith, Nathan Daniel Lucia & Kawachi, Ichiro, 2014. "State-level social capital and suicide mortality in the 50 U.S. states," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 120(C), pages 269-277.
    10. Lorena Cecilia López Steinmetz & Romina Lucrecia López Steinmetz & Juan Carlos Godoy, 2020. "Is unemployment less important than expected for suicide attempted in developing regions? Occupational profile of suicide attempts in Jujuy, north westernmost Argentina," International Journal of Social Psychiatry, , vol. 66(1), pages 67-75, February.
    11. Phillips, Julie A. & Nugent, Colleen N., 2014. "Suicide and the Great Recession of 2007–2009: The role of economic factors in the 50 U.S. states," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 116(C), pages 22-31.
    12. Cain Polidano & Barbara Hanel & Hielke Buddelmeyer, 2012. "Explaining the SES School Completion Gap," Melbourne Institute Working Paper Series wp2012n16, Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, The University of Melbourne.

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