Abstract:
While it has long been recognised that periods of economic uncertainty, characterised
by increased unemployment and lower economic activity, are associated with
increased suicide rates, no study has examined the impact of policy-related economic
uncertainty on suicide mortality. The aim of this study is to examine the relationship
between economic policy uncertainty and suicide mortality in the United States over the
period 1950–2013 , while controlling for several other socioeconomic determinants of
suicide mortality, as well as age- and gender-variations. The results of the analysis reveal
that increased economic policy uncertainty is associated with increased suicide mortality of
the youngest and the oldest segments of the male population in the United States, while the
female population across all ages is found to be resilient to changes in economic policy
uncertainty.
