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Annals of General Psychiatry
Published in: Annals of General Psychiatry 1/2020

Open Access 01-12-2020 | Suicide | Primary research

Gender difference in suicidal ideation and related factors among rural elderly: a cross-sectional study in Shandong, China

Authors: Lu Lu, Lingzhong Xu, Xiaorong Luan, Long Sun, Jiajia Li, Wenzhe Qin, Jiao Zhang, Xiang Jing, Yali Wang, Yu Xia, Yaozu Li, An’an Jiao

Published in: Annals of General Psychiatry | Issue 1/2020

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Abstract

Background

Suicide is a global public health problem which has significant negative influence on individuals, families and the society. The aim of this study is to investigate the prevalence of suicidal ideation and related factors among elderly people in rural China, and further examine the gender differences of suicidal ideation.

Methods

Data were collected from the 2017 Survey of the Shandong Elderly Family Health Service, which was conducted by Shandong University. A total of 5514 elderly aged 60 and above from rural Shandong were included in this study. Binary logistic regression model was performed to examine the gender difference towards suicidal ideation, and to identify the influencing factors of suicidal ideation by gender among elderly.

Results

7.7% rural elderly reported suicidal ideation in the past 12 months in Shandong, China. The prevalence of suicidal ideation among females was significantly higher than that among males (P < 0.001). Education level, debts, stress of daily life, loneliness and psychological distress were significantly related to suicidal ideation in both males and females. Besides, negative life events and life satisfaction were found to be significantly associated with suicidal ideation in females but not in males.

Conclusions

There was a significant gender difference towards suicidal ideation among rural elderly in Shandong, China. So, gender difference should be considered when medical practitioners and public health workers seek to prevent and manage suicidal ideation among rural elderly, which will be important to develop strategies for coping with risk factors for suicidal ideation among males and females. In other words, more attention should be paid to females who had encountered negative life event or with lower life satisfaction.
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Metadata
Title
Gender difference in suicidal ideation and related factors among rural elderly: a cross-sectional study in Shandong, China
Authors
Lu Lu
Lingzhong Xu
Xiaorong Luan
Long Sun
Jiajia Li
Wenzhe Qin
Jiao Zhang
Xiang Jing
Yali Wang
Yu Xia
Yaozu Li
An’an Jiao
Publication date
01-12-2020
Publisher
BioMed Central
Keywords
Suicide
Suicide
Published in
Annals of General Psychiatry / Issue 1/2020
Electronic ISSN: 1744-859X
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12991-019-0256-0

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