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Cited by 390Suicide and Self-Harm StudiesReligion, Spirituality, and PsychologyReligion and Society Interactions

Religion and Suicide Risk: A Systematic Review

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Lawrence, Ryan E., Oquendo, Maria A., Stanley, Barbara·2016·Archives of Suicide Research
DOI 10.1080/13811118.2015.1004494PMC PMC7310534
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Abstract

Although religion is reported to be protective against suicide, the empirical evidence is inconsistent. Research is complicated by the fact that there are many dimensions to religion (affiliation, participation, doctrine) and suicide (ideation, attempt, completion). We systematically reviewed the literature on religion and suicide over the last 10 years (89 articles) with a goal of identifying what specific dimensions of religion are associated with specific aspects of suicide. We found that religious affiliation does not necessarily protect against suicidal ideation, but does protect against suicide attempts. Whether religious affiliation protects against suicide attempts may depend on the culture-specific implications of affiliating with a particular religion, since minority religious groups can feel socially isolated. After adjusting for social support measures, religious service attendance is not especially protective against suicidal ideation, but does protect against suicide attempts, and possibly protects against suicide. Future qualitative studies might further clarify these associations.

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  • Protective or resilience factors that can help prevent suicide and recovery after an attempt include having a reason to live, hope, developing positive coping strategies, providing supportive environments, and promoting healthy cultural and religious beliefs.

    “Some protective or resilience factors can help prevent suicide and people recovering following an attempt. These factors include having a reason to live, and hope, developing positive coping strategies, providing supportive environments, promoting healthy cultural and religious beliefs [8, 13, 14].”

    From Exploring the role of religion in the recovery experiences of suicide attempt survivors in Ghana (2023) · cites this paper as [8]

    The Conclusion (page unavailable) says religion may protect against suicide attempts by providing a supportive community, hope, and beliefs about suicide; the Attendance at Religious Services comment also describes a sense of purpose. The paper does not establish the broader list of positive coping strategies or supportive environments as general protective factors, nor does it address recovery after an attempt. (LLM, conf=0.87)

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  • Religious affiliation protects against suicide attempts but not against suicidal ideation.

    “Religious affiliation however has been found to protect against suicide attempts but not against suicidal ideation [8].”

    From Exploring the role of religion in the recovery experiences of suicide attempt survivors in Ghana (2023) · cites this paper as [8]

  • Religious affiliation of any type has been reported to be protective against suicide, but this has not been shown for minority religious groups, which may be socially isolated.

    “Religious affiliation of any type has been reported to be protective against suicide, but this has not been shown for minority religious groups, which may be socially isolated.30”

    From Suicide (2020) · cites this paper as [30]

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Authors
Lawrence, R. E., Oquendo, M. A., & Stanley, B.
Affiliations
  • NewYork–Presbyterian Hospital (US)
  • Columbia University Irving Medical Center (US)
Corresponding author
Lawrence, Ryan E.
ORCID
Lawrence, Ryan E.
Venue
Archives of Suicide Research
Publisher
Informa UK Limited
Published
2015-07-20
Volume
20
Issue
1
Pages
1-21
ISSN
  • 1381-1118 (ISSN-L)
  • 1543-6136
DOI
10.1080/13811118.2015.1004494
PMC
PMC7310534
OpenAlex
W1031503832
Cited by
390
References
99
Citations by year
2026: 30 · 2025: 62 · 2024: 44 · 2023: 65 · 2022: 42 · 2021: 52 · 2020: 39 · 2019: 21 · 2018: 21 · 2017: 11 · 2016: 3
FWCI
1.67
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Archives of Suicide Research (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
Funders
  • NIH Office of the Director (R01MH061017 (to BS))
  • National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (P50 MH090964 (to MAO))
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Suicide and Self-Harm Studies
  • Social Sciences › Health › Religion, Spirituality, and Psychology
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Religion and Society Interactions
Keywords
religion, suicide risk, suicidal ideation, suicide attempts, religious affiliation, religious service attendance, religious participation, social isolation, social support, protective factors
MeSH terms
Humans, Minority Groups, Religion, Religion and Psychology, Risk Factors, Social Isolation, Social Support, Suicide, Suicide, Attempted, Spirituality, Suicidal Ideation, Protective Factors

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