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Cohort Variations in Suicide Rates among Families of Nations

An Analysis of Cohorts Born from 1875 through 1985

University of Oregon, USA, jeans{at}uoregon.edu

Robert M. O'Brien

University of Oregon, USA, bobrien{at}oregon.uoregon.edu

Using data on age-specific suicide death rates from 19 modern nations and cohorts born as early as 1875–9, we find that two indicators of cohort-related social capital, relative cohort size and percentage of nonmarital births, are positively and significantly related to suicide rates. These effects are significantly stronger in the English-speaking family of nations, which have historically provided fewer political and social supports to families and children. The analytic model, an extension of the Age-Period Cohort Characteristic model, which utilizes hierarchical linear modeling, provides strong controls for age and period effects as well as for autoregressive effects within cohorts. Our data allow us to include older age groups and data from a wider range of countries than previous studies.

Key Words: families of nations • nonmarital births • relative cohort size • social capital • suicide

International Journal of Comparative Sociology, Vol. 47, No. 1, 5-33 (2006)
DOI: 10.1177/0020715206063258


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