Comparison of suicide characteristics in young rural females and males in China

Objective To investigate characteristics of young male and female suicides in rural China as a first step in the development of relevant prevention strategies. Methods A self-compiled questionnaire for injury deaths was administered to 169 female and 126 male suicides of rural residents ( age range: 15-34 years) , sampled from 20 Disease Surveillance Points around the whole country. Results There were no significant differences in age, years of education, and history of prior suicide attempt between the two gender groups (all P 0. 05). However, in comparison with male victims, the female suicides had a higher family income [ RMB: (200±237) yuan vs. (148±170) yuan per month; P 0.05 ] , higher mean score on Quality Of Life prior to the suicide [ (54±13) score vs. (50±12) score; P 0. 01 ] , and were more likely to be married (80. 5% vs. 51. 6% ; P 0. 001) and to experience marital conflict (52. 1% vs. 38. 9% ; P 0. 05), less likely to have a diagnose of mental illness (44. 3% vs. 70. 6% ; P 0. 001) and somatic disease (13.3% vs. 24. 6% , P 0. 05) , more likely to taking poison ( 86. 4% vs. 76. 2% ; P 0.05). Male suicides were more likely to experience financial problems (54.0% vs. 34.6%; P=0.001), had higher rates of substance abuse (18. 3% vs. 1. 8% ; P 0. 001), had a longer time interval before the suicide discovered [ ( 196±620) min vs. (55±95)min; P 0. 001 ] , and were more likely to be dead at the time of discovery (52. 4% vs. 28.4% ; P = 0. 001). Conclusion The substantial differences between young male and female suicide victims in rural areas indicate the need to develop gender-specific intervention strategies in rural areas. Marital conflict is probably a more important risk factor in female suicides than in men, while economic difficulties and alcohol abuse is a more important risk factor in men.