Does the level of education influence completed suicide? A nationwide register study

Abstract

Objective: To evaluate whether education attainment was associated with completed suicide, a topic only marginally investigated in the literature.

Methods: Data for the years between 2006 and 2008 were extracted from the Italian Mortality Database to include all deaths by suicide and natural causes and to obtain information on their education attainment.

Results: We found significant differences in education attainment between suicide victims and individuals deceased by natural causes, stratified by sex and broken down by age bands. Of both males and females from 15 to 64 years old, suicide victims were significantly more often to have a higher education attainment compared with the same sex and age counterparts died from natural causes. Persons with higher school attainment, compared with those with a maximum primary school degree, had significantly increased odds ratios of dying from a suicide rather than a natural cause. For persons aged 65-74 years or above, however, the differences were not so much obvious. These observations remained almost the same after adjustment for marital status, region of residence and age.

Conclusions: Individual with higher educational achievement may be more prone to suicide risk when facing failures, public shame, and high premorbid functioning.