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Cited by 250Suicide and Self-Harm StudiesHealth disparities and outcomesHomicide, Infanticide, and Child Abuse

Ecological study of social fragmentation, poverty, and suicide

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Whitley, E., Gunnell, D., Dorling, D., Smith, G. D.·1999·BMJ
DOI 10.1136/bmj.319.7216.1034PMC PMC28254
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Abstract

Abstract Objectives: To investigate the association between suicide and area based measures of deprivation and social fragmentation. Design: Ecological study. Setting: 633 parliamentary constituencies of Great Britain as defined in 1991. Main outcome measures: Age and sex specific mortality rates for suicide and all other causes for 1981-92. Results: Mortality from suicide and all other causes increased with increasing Townsend deprivation score, social fragmentation score, and abstention from voting in all age and sex groups. Suicide mortality was most strongly related to social fragmentation, whereas deaths from other causes were more closely associated with Townsend score. Constituencies with absolute increases in social fragmentation and Townsend scores between 1981 and 1991 tended to have greater increases in suicide rates over the same period. The relation between change in social fragmentation and suicide was largely independent of Townsend score, whereas the association with Townsend score was generally reduced after adjustment for social fragmentation. Conclusions: Suicide rates are more strongly associated with measures of social fragmentation than with poverty at a constituency level. Key messages Place of residence may affect health, and mortality from most common diseases tends to be higher in areas characterised by low socioeconomic position Research dating back over 100 years suggests that social fragmentation may influence suicide In the 1980s and 1990s, parliamentary constituencies with high levels of social fragmentation had high rates of suicide, independent of deprivation Constituencies with the greatest increases in social fragmentation between 1981 and 1991 also had the greatest increases in suicide rates over the same period Any targeting of suicide prevention may be more effective if aimed at socially fragmented rather than deprived areas

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  • Small-area characteristics cluster into two dimensions associated with variation in suicide rates: neighborhood deprivation and neighborhood fragmentation.

    “previous research has shown to cluster into two dimensions associated with variation in suicide rates: neighborhood deprivation (22 indicators; e.g., low median education, high unemployment and poverty rates, percent of households receiving public assistance) and neighborhood fragmentation (5 indicators: proportions of households with single-person occupant, vacant, occupant unmarried, occupant”

    From Using Administrative Data to Predict Suicide After Psychiatric Hospitalization in the Veterans Health Administration System (2020) · cites this paper as [53]

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  1. Davey Smith G, Dorling D. Associations between voting patterns and mortality remain. BMJ 1997;315:430-1.

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Authors
Whitley, E., Gunnell, D., Dorling, D., & Smith, G. D.
Affiliations
University of Bristol (GB)
Corresponding author
Whitley, E.
ORCID
Venue
BMJ
Publisher
BMJ
Published
1999-10-16
Volume
319
Issue
7216
Pages
1034-1037
ISSN
  • 0007-1447 (ISSN-L)
  • 0959-8138
  • 1468-5833
DOI
10.1136/bmj.319.7216.1034
PMC
PMC28254
OpenAlex
W1996434420
Cited by
250
References
35
Citations by year
2026: 1 · 2024: 2 · 2023: 3 · 2022: 4 · 2021: 7 · 2020: 10 · 2019: 8 · 2018: 6 · 2017: 4 · 2016: 12 · 2015: 6 · 2014: 12 · 2013: 9 · 2012: 13
FWCI
9.97
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • BMJ (publishedVersion)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • ENLIGHTEN (Jurnal Bimbingan dan Konseling Islam) (submittedVersion)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Suicide and Self-Harm Studies
  • Social Sciences › Health › Health disparities and outcomes
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Homicide, Infanticide, and Child Abuse
Keywords
suicide, social fragmentation, poverty, area deprivation, suicide mortality, all-cause mortality, electoral abstention, parliamentary constituencies
MeSH terms
Adult, Aged, Female, United Kingdom, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Poverty, Regression Analysis, Risk Factors, Social Environment, Suicide, Urban Health, Age Distribution, Sex Distribution

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