Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2016 Apr 23:16:356.
doi: 10.1186/s12889-016-3020-2.

A population-based analysis of increasing rates of suicide mortality in Japan and South Korea, 1985-2010

Sun Y Jeon  1 , Eric N Reither  2 , Ryan K Masters  3
Affiliations

A population-based analysis of increasing rates of suicide mortality in Japan and South Korea, 1985-2010

Sun Y Jeon et al. BMC Public Health. .

Abstract

Background: In the past two decades, rates of suicide mortality have declined among most OECD member states. Two notable exceptions are Japan and South Korea, where suicide mortality has increased by 20 % and 280 %, respectively.

Methods: Population and suicide mortality data were collected through national statistics organizations in Japan and South Korea for the period 1985 to 2010. Age, period of observation, and birth cohort membership were divided into five-year increments. We fitted a series of intrinsic estimator age-period-cohort models to estimate the effects of age-related processes, secular changes, and birth cohort dynamics on the rising rates of suicide mortality in the two neighboring countries.

Results: In Japan, elevated suicide rates are primarily driven by period effects, initiated during the Asian financial crisis of the late 1990s. In South Korea, multiple factors appear to be responsible for the stark increase in suicide mortality, including recent secular changes, elevated suicide risks at older ages in the context of an aging society, and strong cohort effects for those born between the Great Depression and the aftermath of the Korean War.

Conclusion: In spite of cultural, demographic and geographic similarities in Japan and South Korea, the underlying causes of increased suicide mortality differ across these societies-suggesting that public health responses should be tailored to fit each country's unique situation.

Keywords: Age-period-cohort analysis, Intrinsic estimator model, Japan; South Korea; Suicide.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Age-standardized suicide mortality rates in Japan, South Korea and all OECD nations (averaged), 1990–2012 (Source: OECD Factbook. Rates are age-standardized to the 2012 OECD population to account for differences in age structures across countries and over time [1].)
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Suicide mortality rates by age, period and birth cohort in Japan and South Korea, 1985–2010
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Sex-stratified suicide mortality rates by age, period and birth cohort in Japan and South Korea, 1985–2010
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Estimates from intrinsic estimator models of age, period, and cohort effects on suicide mortality in Japan and South Korea, 1985–2010 (Shaded areas are 95% CIs)
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. OECD . OECD Factbook 2014. OECD Publishing. 2014.
    1. Durkheim E. Suicide: A study in sociology (JA Spaulding & G. Simpson, trans.) Glencoe, IL: Free Press. (Original work published 1897); 1951.
    1. Stack S. Suicide: a 15‐year review of the sociological literature part I: cultural and economic factors. Suicide Life-threat. 2000;30(2):145–162. - PubMed
    1. Stack S. Suicide: a 15‐year review of the sociological literature part II: modernization and social integration perspectives. Suicide Life-threat. 2000;30(2):163–176. - PubMed
    1. Wray M, Colen C, Pescosolido B. The sociology of suicide. Annu Rev Sociol. 2011;37:505–528. doi: 10.1146/annurev-soc-081309-150058. - DOI

MeSH terms