Suicide risk is higher for jobless, says study

UNEMPLOYMENT IS associated with a significantly increased risk of suicide in men and an even higher risk in women, according to research from the National Suicide Research Foundation.

The study found that suicide rates and undetermined deaths in men and women were relatively stable during the Celtic Tiger years of 1996-2006.

However, unemployment was associated with a two-to-threefold increased risk of suicide and undetermined death in men and a four-to-sixfold increase in women during this period.

The foundation’s research director Dr Ella Arensman said thatg “what was interesting was that we found for the first time that relatively speaking, the risk for unemployed women was higher than for men. One explanation for this from the international literature is that since the end of the 1980s and particularly through the 1990s and the last decade, women have become an increasing part of the labour market.”

The study, which Dr Arensman carried out with senior statistician, Dr Paul Corcoran, also showed that unemployment was linked with a greater increased risk of suicide when its level was low in 2001-2006 than in the period of decreasing unemployment in 1996-2000.

“The findings that even in periods of fairly low unemployment, the risk of suicide and undetermined deaths in unemployment was still fairly high, could point to the phenomenon of people feeling deviant vis-a-vis their neighbours and other people in their community. This is something people do not really think about, but it shows the relationship between unemployment and suicide is much more complex than we think,” she commented.

Dr Arensman said the outcomes of this study highlighted the need to put in place specific interventions such as increasing awareness of suicide and self harm for people dealing with the unemployed, such as those working in social welfare offices.

“Actions are being taken but one of the things worrying us is that the recession started so rapidly and often with extreme events, we see quite extreme reactions.

“In 2008, for the first time, we saw the highest ever increase in self harm in Irish men.

“We know from international research that self harm in men has a stronger association with suicide than self harm in women and upgoing trends of self harm in men could predict an increase in suicide.”

In a separate study of more than 3,800 Irish adolescents carried out for the foundation, Phd student Elaine McMahon found evidence for the first time of very specific risk factors for deliberate self harm in 15-17 year olds.

Nine per cent of those surveyed had harmed themselves at some point in time and nearly half reported repeated episodes.

Important factors associated with deliberate self harm in both boys and girls were drug use and knowing a friend who engaged in self harm.

Specific factors associated with self harm in girls were sexual abuse, knowing a family member who engaged in self harm, fighting with parents and problems with friends. Among boys, experience with bullying, problems with school work, impulsivity and anxiety were associated with deliberate self harm.

“These findings show that schools have an important role to play in the prevention of deliberate self harm. Prevention strategies should aim to modify factors associated with self harm through the promotion of positive mental health rather than sanctions which don’t work with teenagers and through anti-bullying initiatives and alcohol and drug education,” said Dr Arensman.