Who commits suicide most? Suicide by gender and age

Abstract

Suicide, defined as killing oneself deliberately,1‒3 is one of the leading causes of death across the world.4 In 2015, about 800,000 people ended their lives by committing suicide (World Health Organization).5 It is important to note that the global suicide rate per 100,000 people is 16.7 Similar to the other countries, although suicide rate in Turkey is about 4 times lower than the global suicide rate 6 it has been recognized as a public health issue, which requires attention. Suicide rates vary by gender. A number of studies have indicated that males commit suicide more than females7,8 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention;8‒19 The global male/female suicide ratio is about 3.6:1.7 For instance, on average, in the U.S., male suicide rates are between three to four times as high as those for females, accounting for 79% of all suicides.8‒18 Baker et al.20 found that in America between 2000 and 2010, suicide rate increased, and suicide rate increased faster for females than males. Another study found that in America, suicide rates for both genders increased between 2000 and 2014.21 In the Republic of Korea, Suicide rate among males in 2015 was 2.5 times higher than that among females.22 In Europe, males are almost five times more likely to commit suicide than women.19 Similar to the other countries, one study conducted in Turkey found that suicide rate for males was higher than that for females.23 Suicide rates generally increase with age in many countries although there is a decline with increasing age in a small number of countries.24 Studies have shown that in many countries, suicide rates for those aged >65 years are higher than that of young people.7‒26 More specifically, studies have shown that people aged 75 and older have rates that are three times as high as people aged 15-24 years,15 and people over 65 years and older19‒27 and people between 45–59 years old19 have the highest suicide rate. In America, suicide rates increased among all age groups between 2000 and 2014.28 Baker et al.20 found that in America in 2010, suicide rate (19.4) was the highest among those between 45 and 59 years old whereas suicide rate (10.5) was the lowest among those between 15 and 24 years old.20 Another study conducted in America examined suicide rate between 1999 and 2014, and found similar results29 Suicide rates also vary by age and gender. Aktas et al.,23 conducted a study about suicide for the period between 2002 and 2011 in Turkey. They found that males aged 15-24 and males 25-34 had the highest suicide rate, and suicide rate decreased after the age of 55.23 They also found that females aged 15-34 had the highest suicide rate.23 The above-mentioned studies have generally examined suicide rates by gender, age, and both gender and age in a descriptive way. More research needs to be conducted to investigate suicide thoroughly by using more advanced statistical analyses. There is also scant research that has investigated suicide rates by gender and age in depth by using statistical analyses, particularly in Turkey. In addition, there might be changes in suicide rates by gender and age over time, which requires new research. To fill the gap in the literature in the context of Turkey, the present study focused on investigating suicide rates by gender, age, and both age and gender by using various statistical analyses. More specifically, the study was designed to seek to address the following research questions: