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The Growing Use of Firearms by Suicidal Older Women, 1979–1992: A Research Note
Author(s) -
Adamek Margaret E.,
Kaplan Mark S.
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
suicide and life‐threatening behavior
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.544
H-Index - 90
eISSN - 1943-278X
pISSN - 0363-0234
DOI - 10.1111/j.1943-278x.1996.tb00258.x
Subject(s) - health statistics , demography , suicide prevention , suicide rates , medicine , injury prevention , occupational safety and health , population , poison control , gerontology , psychiatry , environmental health , psychology , sociology , pathology
Suicide among older women (65 +) has received very little attention despite increasing numbers of suicides in this population. An examination of national mortality data from the National Center for Health Statistics for the years 1979 through 1992 shows an increasing trend in rates of suicide among older women and a declining trend among women under 65. Over the 14‐year period, firearms replaced poisoning as the most prevalent method of suicide by women 65 and over. The results seem consistent with the assertion that the availability, familiarity, and cultural acceptability of firearms may play a role in the choice of suicide method among older women. Although violent death and the use of firearms are generally associated with males in our society, the trends reported here indicate that greater attention to firearm suicides among older women is warranted.