Suicide Attempts among School-Attending Adolescents in Mongolia: Associated Factors and Gender Differences

Abstract

Attempting suicide is an important risk factor that can lead to suicide death. The aim of the current study was to examine the prevalence of suicide attempts and to identify the gender-specific predictors of suicide among adolescents in Mongolia. We analyzed data from the 2019 Mongolian Global School-Based Health Survey (GSHS) conducted nationwide among 13–18-year-old students. Univariable and multivariable analyses were performed to assess the correlates of suicide attempts. Overall, 32.1% of the adolescents reported to have had suicide attempts. Multivariable analysis showed a significant association in the total sample of suicide attempts with lack of close friends, anxiety, injury and violence, smoking and alcohol drinking, and sexual intercourse. Male suicide attempters were less likely to have close friends and more likely to have injuries, been physically attacked, been bullied, smoke, drink alcohol, and have had sexual intercourse. Within the female subgroup, anxiety, injury and violence, smoking and alcohol drinking significantly increased the odds of reporting suicide attempts. Increase of the student’s age by one year decreased the odds ratio of suicide attempts. Nearly one in three students had had a suicide attempt. Several factors, including mental distress, violence, and risky behaviors were found to be associated with suicide attempts. These can aid in designing intervention strategies for preventing suicidal behaviors among adolescents.

Suicidal Attempts among Secondary School-Going Adolescents in Kilimanjaro Region, Northern Tanzania

“…Bullying was also linked to suicide attempts in this study, which is like other studies in Mongolia [ 33 ] and from 90 countries in a pooled analysis [ 15 ]. Students who are victims of bullying have low self-esteem and experience loneliness, distress, and mental health problems [ 34 ].…”

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“…On the other hand, the current prevalence was lower than the previous studies done in Benin, Liberia, Guatemala, and Mongolia, which found the prevalence of suicidal attempts as 28.3%, 33.7%, 16.6% and 32.2% respectively [ 32 , 49 , 55 , 56 ]. The reason for this variation may be that in a study of Guatemala and Mongolia, there had been a greater number of female participants(more than 50%), but in the current study, females were lower than male participants 41.3%, and the risk of suicidal attempts was increased among female than males [ 57 ].…”

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“…Recent studies indicate that youth in Mongolia have been experiencing a concerning increase in mental health distress. In a recent study, 32.7% of adolescents ages 13–18 reported they had attempted suicide and they identified loneliness, bullying, and risky behaviors such as early sexual intercourse as key factors (Badarch et al, 2022). Further, death by suicide among adolescents increased from 3% to 11% between 2003 and 2019.…”