Explaining the income and suicidality relationship: income rank is more strongly associated with suicidal thoughts and attempts than income
Abstract
Purpose Low income is an established risk factor for suicidal thoughts and attempts. This study aims to explore income within a social rank perspective, proposing that the relationship between income and suicidality is accounted for by the rank of that income within comparison groups.Methods Participants (N = 5779) took part in the Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey across England. An income rank variable was created by ranking each individual's income within four comparison groups (sex by education, education by region, sex by region, and sex by education by region). Along with absolute income and demographic covariates, these variables were tested for associations with suicidal thoughts and attempts, both across the lifetime and in the past year.Results Absolute income was associated with suicidal thoughts and attempts, both across the lifetime and in the past year. However, when income rank within the four comparison groups was regressed on lifetime suicidal thoughts and attempts, only income rank remained significant and therefore accounted for this relationship. A similar result was found for suicidal thoughts within the past year although the pattern was less clear for suicide attempts in the past year.Conclusions Social position, rather than absolute income, may be more important in understanding suicidal thoughts and attempts. This suggests that it may be psychosocial rather than material factors that explain the relationship between income and suicidal outcomes.
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
Individual-neighborhood differences sometimes predict suicides.
“Based on evidence that individual-neighborhood differences sometimes predict suicides (55, 56), we created interactions of patient race/ethnicity with the percent of neighborhood residents who were of the same race/ethnicity”
From Using Administrative Data to Predict Suicide After Psychiatric Hospitalization in the Veterans Health Administration System (2020) · cites this paper as [55]
Self-check
Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.
The self-check needs the paper’s full text.
Cites
A theory of social comparison processes
Festinger, L. (1954) · Human Relations · doi:10.1177/001872675400700202 · Cited by 20,926 · see citing works
Social class and mental illness: Community study.
Hollingshead, A. B., & Redlich, F. C. (1958) · John Wiley & Sons, Inc. eBooks · doi:10.1037/10645-000 · Cited by 3,744 · see citing works
Cross-national prevalence and risk factors for suicidal ideation, plans and attempts
Nock, M. K., Borges, G., Bromet, E. J., Alonso, J., Angermeyer, M., Beautrais, A., Bruffaerts, R., Chiu, W. T., de Girolamo, G., Gluzman, S., et al. (2008) · British Journal of Psychiatry · doi:10.1192/bjp.bp.107.040113 · Cited by 2,654 · see citing works
The social origins of depression
Shapiro, M. B. (1979) · Behaviour Research and Therapy · doi:10.1016/0005-7967(79)90104-9 · Cited by 2,212 · see citing works
Baumeister, R. F. (1990) · Psychological Review · doi:10.1037/0033-295x.97.1.90 · Cited by 1,919 · cited 1× · see citing works
“In recent decades, it has become increasingly recognised that mental disorders are not sufficiently specific markers of suicidal ideation and behaviour [3–5].”
BackgroundSocial Class and Mental Illness: A Community Study
Hollingshead, A. B., & Redlich, F. C. (2007) · American Journal of Public Health · doi:10.2105/ajph.97.10.1756 · Cited by 1,845 · see citing works
Income inequality and population health: A review and explanation of the evidence
Wilkinson, R. G., & Pickett, K. E. (2005) · Social Science & Medicine · doi:10.1016/j.socscimed.2005.08.036 · Cited by 1,786 · see citing works
Lynch, J. W. (2000) · BMJ · doi:10.1136/bmj.320.7243.1200 · Cited by 1,511 · see citing works
Lewis, G., Pelosi, A. J., Araya, R., & Dunn, G. (1992) · Psychological Medicine · doi:10.1017/s0033291700030415 · Cited by 1,487 · see citing works
Socioeconomic Status and Psychiatric Disorders: The Causation-Selection Issue
Dohrenwend, B. P., Levav, I., Shrout, P. E., Schwartz, S., Naveh, G., Link, B. G., Skodol, A. E., & Stueve, A. (1992) · Science · doi:10.1126/science.1546291 · Cited by 1,276 · see citing works
The psychology of suicidal behaviour
O'Connor, R. C., & Nock, M. K. (2014) · The Lancet Psychiatry · doi:10.1016/s2215-0366(14)70222-6 · Cited by 1,193 · see citing works
Self-citationGILBERT, P., & ALLAN, S. (1998) · Psychological Medicine · doi:10.1017/s0033291798006710 · Cited by 972 · see citing works
Adult psychiatric morbidity in England, 2007: Results of a household survey
Mcmanus, S., Meltzer, H., Brugha, T., Bebbington, P., & Jenkins, R. (2009) · Unpublished · doi:10.13140/2.1.1563.5205 · Cited by 814 · see citing works
Marmot, M. G., & Wilkinson, R. G. (2001) · BMJ · doi:10.1136/bmj.322.7296.1233 · Cited by 776 · see citing works
Relationship Between Household Income and Mental Disorders
Sareen, J., Afifi, T. O., McMillan, K. A., & Asmundson, G. J. G. (2011) · Archives of General Psychiatry · doi:10.1001/archgenpsychiatry.2011.15 · Cited by 685 · see citing works
Boyce, C. J., Brown, G. D. A., & Moore, S. (2010) · Psychological Science · doi:10.1177/0956797610362671 · Cited by 651 · see citing works
Towards an integrated motivational–volitional model of suicidal behaviour
O'connor, R. C. (2011) · International Handbook of Suicide Prevention · doi:10.1002/9781119998556.ch11 · Cited by 552 · see citing works
Self-citationThe role of defeat and entrapment in depression, anxiety, and suicide.
Taylor, P. J., Gooding, P. A., Wood, A. M., & Tarrier, N. (2011) · Psychological Bulletin · doi:10.1037/a0022935 · Cited by 418 · see citing works
Self-citationDoes Wage Rank Affect Employees’ Well‐being?
Brown, G. D. A., GARDNER, J., Oswald, A. J., & Qian, J. (2008) · Industrial Relations A Journal of Economy and Society · doi:10.1111/j.1468-232x.2008.00525.x · Cited by 371 · see citing works
Behavior and physiology of social stress and depression in female cynomolgus monkeys
Shively, C. A., Laber, K., & Anton, R. F. (1997) · Biological Psychiatry · doi:10.1016/s0006-3223(96)00185-0 · Cited by 339 · see citing works
Equivalence scales for children
McClements, L. D. (1977) · Journal of Public Economics · doi:10.1016/0047-2727(77)90018-4 · Cited by 251 · see citing works
The Relations between Perfectionism and Suicidality: A Systematic Review
O'Connor, R. C. (2007) · Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior · doi:10.1521/suli.2007.37.6.698 · Cited by 245 · see citing works
Self-citationSelf‐harm in a mixed clinical population: The roles of self‐criticism, shame, and social rank
Gilbert, P., McEwan, K., Irons, C., Bhundia, R., Christie, R., Broomhead, C., & Rockliff, H. (2010) · British Journal of Clinical Psychology · doi:10.1348/014466509x479771 · Cited by 214 · cited 2× · see citing works
“particularly when self-persecuting, are also at increased risk of self-harm [39].”
BackgroundRelationship of anhedonia and anxiety to social rank, defeat and entrapment
Gilbert, P., Allan, S., Brough, S., Melley, S., & Miles, J. N. V. (2002) · Journal of Affective Disorders · doi:10.1016/s0165-0327(01)00392-5 · Cited by 200 · cited 1× · see citing works
“Previous research has argued that the misfiring of this adaptive behaviour contributes to the aetiology of some psychiatric illnesses, such as depression [18] and anxiety [19], and this has been supported by animal studies [20–22].”
ResultPsychological processes and repeat suicidal behavior: a four-year prospective study
O'Connor, R. C., Smyth, R., Ferguson, E., Ryan, C., & Williams, J. M. G. (2013) · Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology · doi:10.1037/a0033751 · Cited by 194 · see citing works
Self-citationInternational Handbook of Suicide Prevention
(2011) · Wiley eBooks · doi:10.1002/9781119998556 · Cited by 183 · see citing works
Kondo, N., Kawachi, I. I., Subramanian, S. V., Takeda, Y., & Yamagata, Z. (2008) · Social Science & Medicine · doi:10.1016/j.socscimed.2008.06.002 · Cited by 167 · see citing works
Rasmussen, S. A., Fraser, L., Gotz, M., MacHale, S., Mackie, R., Masterton, G., McConachie, S., & O'Connor, R. C. (2010) · British Journal of Clinical Psychology · doi:10.1348/014466509x415735 · Cited by 160 · see citing works
Self-citationCry of Pain: Understanding Suicide and Self-Harm
Williams, J. M. G. (1998) · Medical Entomology and Zoology · Cited by 156 · see citing works
Cry of Pain: Understanding Suicide and Self-harm
Ramsay, R. (1998) · Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine · doi:10.1177/014107689809100324 · Cited by 150 · see citing works
Suicidal Behavior as a Cry of Pain: Test of a Psychological Model
O'Conno, R. C. (2003) · Archives of Suicide Research · doi:10.1080/713848941 · Cited by 148 · see citing works
Sloman, L., & Gilbert, P. (2000) · Routledge eBooks · doi:10.4324/9781410605207 · Cited by 145 · see citing works
Wood, A. M., Boyce, C. J., Moore, S., & Brown, G. D. A. (2011) · Journal of Affective Disorders · doi:10.1016/j.jad.2011.09.014 · Cited by 129 · see citing works
Self-citationDoes relative deprivation predict the need for mental health services?
Eibner, C., Sturn, R., & Gresenz, C. R. (2004) · PubMed · Cited by 117 · see citing works
McMillan, K. A., Enns, M. W., Asmundson, G. J. G., & Sareen, J. (2010) · The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry · doi:10.4088/jcp.08m04986gry · Cited by 107 · see citing works
Development of a striving to avoid inferiority scale
Gilbert, P., Broomhead, C., Irons, C., McEwan, K., Bellew, R., Mills, A., Gale, C., & Knibb, R. C. (2006) · British Journal of Social Psychology · doi:10.1348/014466606x157789 · Cited by 99 · see citing works
Genetic and Phylogenetic Aspects of Mood Variation
Price, J. (1972) · International Journal of Mental Health · doi:10.1080/00207411.1972.11448570 · Cited by 92 · see citing works
Taylor, P. J., Gooding, P. A., Wood, A. M., Johnson, J., & Tarrier, N. (2011) · Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior · doi:10.1111/j.1943-278x.2011.00029.x · Cited by 81 · see citing works
Self-citationA social rank explanation of how money influences health.
Daly, M., Boyce, C. J., & Wood, A. M. (2014) · Health Psychology · doi:10.1037/hea0000098 · Cited by 78 · see citing works
Self-citationEthological Studies in Animals and Man, Their Use in Psychiatry
Dixon, A. K., Fisch, H. U., Huber, C. G., & Walser, A. (1989) · Pharmacopsychiatry · doi:10.1055/s-2007-1014624 · Cited by 62 · see citing works
How the Involuntary Defeat Strategy Relates to Depression
Buunk, B. P., & Brenninkmeyer, V. (2000) · Routledge eBooks · doi:10.4324/9781410605207-9 · Cited by 53 · see citing works
Per capita income is related to suicide rates in men but not in women
Sher, L. (2005) · The Journal of Men s Health and Gender · doi:10.1016/j.jmhg.2005.04.016 · Cited by 35 · see citing works
Ferrada‐Noli, M. (1997) · Psychological Reports · doi:10.2466/pr0.1997.81.1.307 · Cited by 19 · see citing works
Chung, C., Pai, L., Kao, S., Lee, M., Yang, T., & Chien, W. (2013) · Crisis · doi:10.1027/0227-5910/a000218 · Cited by 18 · see citing works
Towards an Integrated Motivational-Volitional of Suicidal Behaviour
O’Connor, R. C. (2011) · ENLIGHTEN (Jurnal Bimbingan dan Konseling Islam) · Cited by 13 · see citing works
Self-citationStriving and Competing and its Relationship to Self-Harm in Young Adults
Williams, K., Gilbert, P., & McEwan, K. (2009) · International Journal of Cognitive Therapy · doi:10.1521/ijct.2009.2.3.282 · Cited by 8 · see citing works
Flagged first, then by citations
Research works printed but not linked: 2
- [20]20. Von Holst, D. (1986). Vegetative and somatic components of tree shrews' behaviour. Journal of the Autonomic Nervous System (Suppl.), 657-670.
- [24]24. Williams, J. M. G. (1997). Cry of pain: Understanding suicide and selfharm. Harmondsworth, England: Penguin.
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Kessler, R. C., Bauer, M. S., Bishop, T. M., Demler, O. V., Dobscha, S. K., Gildea, S. M., Goulet, J. L., Karras, E., Kreyenbuhl, J., Landes, S. J., et al. (2020) · Frontiers in Psychiatry · doi:10.3389/fpsyt.2020.00390 · Cited by 52 · see citing works
- Authors
- Wetherall, K., Daly, M., Robb, K. A., Wood, A. M., & O’Connor, R. C.
- Affiliations
- University of Glasgow (GB)
- University of Stirling (GB)
- Corresponding author
- Wetherall, Karen
- Venue
- Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology
- Published
- 2015-04-18
- Volume
- 50
- Issue
- 6
- Pages
- 929-937
- ISSN
- 0933-7954 (ISSN-L)
- 1433-9285
- OpenAlex
- W1981321692
- Cited by
- 52
- References
- 46
- Citations by year
- 2026: 2 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 6 · 2023: 5 · 2022: 5 · 2021: 5 · 2020: 6 · 2019: 3 · 2018: 4 · 2017: 3 · 2016: 5 · 2015: 2
- FWCI
- 5.80
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Licence
- www.springer.com/tdm (tdm)
- Locations
- Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- ENLIGHTEN (Jurnal Bimbingan dan Konseling Islam) (acceptedVersion)
- Stirling Online Research Repository (University of Stirling) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- Economic and Social Research Council (ES/K00588X/1)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Suicide and Self-Harm Studies
- Social Sciences › Health › Health disparities and outcomes
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Employment and Welfare Studies
- Keywords
- income, suicidality, suicidal ideation, suicide attempts, income rank, social rank, social status, social class, psychosocial factors, material deprivation, mental health
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Aged, England, Female, Humans, Income, Male, Middle Aged, Surveys and Questionnaires, Risk Factors, Social Class, Socioeconomic Factors, Suicide, Suicide, Attempted, Suicidal Ideation
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
