Sex-related differences in methods of and reasons for suicide in Turkey between 1990 and 2010

Abstract

Objective: To analyse suicides occurring in Turkey between 1990 and 2010 according to sex, age, reason and method. Methods: Data concerning suicides occurring in Turkey between 1990 and 2010 were obtained from annual records published by the Turkish Statistical Institute. Data were analysed according to sex, age, reason for suicide and suicide method. Results: The crude suicide rate was 2.42 per 100 000 population in 1990 and 4.02 per 100 000 population in 2010. The highest number of suicides was seen in those aged 15-24 years. In this age group, the number of suicides in females was significantly higher than in males. The most common suicide method in Turkey was hanging. Men used firearms more frequently than women. All the reasons for suicide occurred in a higher number of males than females; however, the difference between males and females was more significant for economic problems, relationship problems and educational failure. The leading reason for suicide in females was relationship problems. Conclusion: Detecting population subgroups with a high suicide risk and obtaining regional demographic data are of great importance for future studies on suicide prevention.

Attempted suicide and suicide of young Turkish women in Europe and Turkey: A systematic literature review of characteristics and precipitating factors

“…One of the studies conducted in Switzerland indicated that Turkish women under the age of 25 accounted for the 38.6% of all attempted suicides [ 41 , 42 ]. Similar findings regarding the high frequency of young women among people who attempted [ 43 , 45 , 46 , 48 , 52 , 55 ] or died by suicide [ 12 , 28 , 62 , 63 ] were reported in traditional areas in Turkey. For instance, an article with suicide data derived from the annual reports of Turkey’s suicide statistics (between 1998 and 2000) indicated a high number of suicides among girls under 15 [ 62 ].…”

“…The epidemiology of suicidal behaviour of Turkish women (residing in Turkey) shows that the suicide rate among Turkish women aged 15–24 in Eastern Turkey is twice as high as their male counterparts since 2000 [ 9 ]. These finding were recently replicated by an annual report on suicide statistics drawn from Turkey’s general population [ 12 ]. Similarly, hospital registration data in Southeast Turkey has shown that attempted suicide rates were 4.15 times higher among young women 15–24 years old who presented at emergency departments compared to men of the same age as well as older men and women [ 11 , 13 ].…”

“…The two studies with the most dramatic gender differences relative to attempted suicide (the sex ratio of women to men was 4:1) were conducted in more traditional areas in Turkey [ 50 , 54 ]. Contrary to these findings, most studies on suicide [ 12 , 57 , 58 , 60 , 61 , 63 ] indicated that men are at more risk than women in Turkey, with one exception [ 28 ]: Altindag and colleagues [ 28 ] reported a female-to-male suicide ratio of 1.7:1 in a traditional rural area in Turkey.…”

Epidemiology of Suicide and Associated Socio-Demographic Factors in Emergency Department Patients in 7 General Hospitals in Northwestern China

“…They usually have a variety of pressure coming from job, marriage, and social interactions. If they cannot cope with setbacks and changes, suicide was possibly selected to escape from the frustration [ 13 , 14 ]. World-wide, men die from suicides 2–3 times more often than women, but women make more suicide attempts, which is called the “gender paradox” in suicide [ 15 ].…”

Suicide in Turkey: its changes and regional differences

“…The selected methods for suicide differ in Turkey according to gender. Methods including violent action such as using a firearm, a sharp instrument or jumping off a high place are methods which dis-play male characteristics while women prefer methods such as consuming chemical substances (Aktaş, 2014;Öner et. al., 2015).…”