Suicide and gender development: an economic exploration of male and female suicide incidence
Date
2022-01-26
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Abstract
Suicide remains to be one of the primary causes of mortality in the world. Its economic
rationality must be understood as the socioeconomic conditions experienced by an individual
play an important role in investigating suicide incidence. This research intends to explore the
nature of the impact of gender development indicators on suicide rates. The researchers
hypothesize that indicators of the human development index (HDI) pertaining to job security
are positively associated with suicide rates for both the male and female populations across all
development groups, especially in the polar opposite groups (i.e., very high and low human
development groups). Meanwhile, per capita income is inferred to be positively related to
suicide incidence in the very high HDI group, but the former is negatively related to the latter
in the low HDI group. To test this, the age-standardized suicide rates and the data on four HDI
indicators (i.e., mean and expected years of schooling, life expectancy, and per capita incomes)
and two measures of job insecurity (i.e., unemployment, and vulnerable employment) for the
year 2019 were analyzed using two econometric models that utilize log-linear regression.
Results show that per capita income was positively related to female suicide rates in the very
high HDI group while it was negatively related to the latter in the low HDI group. Male suicide
rates were negatively associated with per capita income in both groups. Unemployment and
vulnerable employment possess a negative association with female suicide rates in the very
high HDI group, while the inverse is true in the low HDI group. In both groups, male suicide
rates were negatively associated with unemployment and vulnerable employment. Finally,
irrespective of HDI group, males are more prone to suicide than females. These results suggest
that societal inequality and engagement in vulnerable jobs are possible explanations behind
female suicidal behavior. At the same time, the unconventionality of the patterns of male
suicide behavior relative to unemployment and job insecurity necessitates the use of a
multifaceted approach in identifying potential causes.