Summary
A suite of five reports, and a sixth summary report, has been produced as part of a contract the Ministry of Health held with the Wellington School of Medicine and Health Sciences between 2001 and 2004.
The reports explore a range of possible social explanations, analyses and evidence about New Zealand’s suicide trends. The report topics ranged from a selective literature review of published studies examining a range of social factors for suicide, to contemporary Māori views on suicide (whakamomori), comparisons of suicide rates between Finland and New Zealand during economic recession, and the correlation between suicide and socio-economic fluctuations in New Zealand over a 20-year period.
The broad consensus arising from the suite of reports is that social factors are relevant to suicide. However the linkages between macrosocial, cultural and macroeconomic factors and individual suicidal behaviours still remain unclear.
The Ministry commissioned this research to broaden understanding of the causes of suicide which, to date, has predominantly focused on individual-level risk factors.
| Report no. | Author/s | Title |
|---|---|---|
| 1 – Literature review (2002) |
Caroline Maskill, Ian Hodges, Velma McClellan, Dr Sunny Collings |
Explaining Patterns of Suicide: A selective review of studies examining social, economic, cultural and other population-level influences ISBN 0-478-29656-8 (Book) ISBN 0-478-29604-5 (Website) HP 4167 |
| 2 – Review of routine data (2002) |
Stuart Ferguson, Assc Prof Tony Blakely, Bridget Allan, Dr Sunny Collings |
Suicide Rates in New Zealand: exploring associations with social and economic factors ISBN 0-478-29657-6 (Book) ISBN 0-47828381-4 (Internet) HP 4114 |
| 3 – Māori (2004) | Dr Paul Hirini, Dr Sunny Collings |
Whakamomori: He whakaaro, he korero noa. A collection of contemporary views on Māori and suicide ISBN: 0-478-29658-4 (Book) ISBN 0-478-28379-2 (Internet) HP 4115 |
| 4 – New Zealand–Finland comparison (2003) |
Assc Prof Philippa Howden-Chapman, Dr Simon Hales, Dr Ralph Chapman, Dr Ilmo Keskimaki |
The Impact of Economic Recession on Youth Suicide: A comparison of New Zealand and Finland ISBN 0-478-29650-9 (Book) ISBN 0-478-29653-3 (Internet) HP 4165 No hard copy available |
| 5 – Data analysis from the New Zealand Census –Mortality Study (2004) |
Dr Sunny Collings, Assc Prof Tony Blakely, June Atkinson, Jackie Fawcett |
Suicide Trends and Social Factors in New Zealand 1981–1999: Analyses from the New Zealand Census-Mortality Study ISBN 0-478-29654-1 (Book) ISBN 0-478-29655-X (Internet) HP 4166 No hard copy available |
| 6 – Summary of reports 1–5 (2004) |
Dr Sunny Collings, Assoc Prof Annette Beautrais |
Suicide Prevention in New Zealand: a contemporary perspective ISBN 0-478-28373-3 (Book) ISBN 0-478-28374-1 (Internet) HP 4108 |