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The perils of returning to school: New insights into the seasonality of youth suicides

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  • Chandler, Vincent
  • Heger, Dörte
  • Wuckel, Christiane

Abstract

Taking advantage of temporal and geographical variations in the timing of school holidays in Germany, this paper finds that school holidays cause an 19 percent (0.03 percentage points) decrease in the probability of youth suicide. This effect is constant across different types of holidays (fall, Christmas, winter, Easter, Pentecost, and summer). Moreover, we find evidence of a spike in suicide propensity in the first two days following the end of school holidays. The results are robust to the inclusion of a series of control variables and to different definitions of youth. Overall, this paper suggests that school holidays have a beneficial impact on the well-being of students and that suicide prevention efforts are particularly important in the days following the end of holidays.

Suggested Citation

  • Chandler, Vincent & Heger, Dörte & Wuckel, Christiane, 2019. "The perils of returning to school: New insights into the seasonality of youth suicides," Ruhr Economic Papers 820, RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-University Bochum, TU Dortmund University, University of Duisburg-Essen.
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:rwirep:820
    DOI: 10.4419/86788951
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
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    4. Will Dobbie & Roland G. Fryer Jr., 2013. "Getting beneath the Veil of Effective Schools: Evidence from New York City," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 5(4), pages 28-60, October.
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    school; suicide; teenagers; bullying; stress;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I12 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health Behavior
    • I21 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Analysis of Education

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