Revisiting the Relationship Between Suicide and Unemployment in Mexico: Evidence From Linear and Non-linear Co-integration

Abstract

This study attempts to investigate if suicide is interlinked with unemployment in Mexico by making use of a recently developed Bootstrap ARDL bound test over the years of 1981-2016. To avoid omitting variable bias, we use economic growth rate as a control variable. The empirical results indicate that no co-integration among these three variables and there is a positively bidirectional causality between suicide rate and the unemployment rate. This study will showcase that the economic growth rate negatively affects unemployment rate and unidirectional Granger causality running from economic growth rate to the unemployment rate in Mexico. The findings presented in this study could provide with valuable information for society and health policy makers to formulate the policies on suicide prevention in Mexico.

Keywords: C3: I1; J6; bootstrap ARDL bound test; economic growth; granger causality test; suicide rate; unemployment rate.