Suicide Rates in Greece: Comparing Mortality Data with Police Reporting Statistics and Investigating Recent Trends
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This paper analyzes recent suicide trends in Greece. It relies on two separate databases, vital statistics and police records, the latter never having been explored before. Those datasets present a different picture about the suicide rates and trends, confirming the crucial importance of data reliability and consistency in time trend analysis. Frequencies and ratios were calculated and compared using paired sample t-tests. Overtime trend changes were detected applying segment regression analysis on both data collections. Our findings suggest that there are important differences between vital and police statistics on suicides. At national level, over the period 1990–2013, vital statistics reported an average of 7 percent more suicides, annually. Differences were more pronounced among women and younger ages. Both datasets confirm a change in total suicide trends during recent recession, but police data analysis supports that increases are less impressive than vital statistics claim.
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References
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https://doi.org/10.1093/eurpub/ckt083
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Madianos M., Economou M., Alexiou T. and Stefanis C. (2011). Depression and economic hardship across Greece in 2008 and 2009: two cross-sectional surveys nationwide. Soc. Psychiatr Epidemiol 46, 943–52.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s00127-010-0265-4
Phillips D. and Ruth T. (1993). Adequacy of official statistics for scientific research and public policy. Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior 23, 307–319.
Phillips, J.A. and Nugent, C.N. (2014). Suicide and Great Recession of 2007–2009: the role of economic factors in the 50 US states. Social Science and Medicine (116), 22–31.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2014.06.015
Rachiotis, G. Stuckler, D., McKee, M. and Hadjichristodoulou, C. (2015). What has happened to suicides during the Greek economic crisis? Findings from an ecological study of suicides and their determinants (2003–2012). BMJ Open 5.
https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2014-007295
Ryan, S. and Porth, L. (2007) A Tutorial on the Piecewise Regression Approach Applied to Bedload Transport Data, General Technical Report RMRS-GTR-189. available at: http://www.fs.fed.us/rm/pubs/rmrs_gtr189.pdf
Tøllefsen I.M, Hem, E. and Ekeberg Ø. (2012). The reliability of suicide statistics: a systematic review. BMC Psychiatry 12, 9.
https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-244X-12-9
Värnik P. (2012). Suicide in the world. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 9, 760–771.
https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph9030760
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2015.09.033
Antonakakis N. and Collins A. (2014). The impact of fiscal austerity on suicide: On the empirics of a modern Greek tragedy. Social Science & Medicine 112, 39–50.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2014.04.019
Barr B, D. Taylor-Robinson, A. Scott-Samuel, M. McKee and D. Stuckler. (2012). Suicides associated with the 2008–10 economic recession in England: time trend analysis. British Medical Journal 2012;345:e5142 doi: 10.1136/bmj.e5142
https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.e5142
Blasco-Fontecilla H, Perez-Rodriguez MM, Garcia-Nieto R, et al. (2012). Worldwide impact of economic cycles on suicide trends over 3 decades: differences according to level of development. A mixed effect model study. BMJ Open 2012;2:e000785. doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2011-000785.
https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2011-000785
Branas, C., Kastanaki, A., Michalodimitrakis, M., Tzougas, J., Kranioti, E., Theodorakis, P., Carr, B. and Wiebe, D. (2015). The impact of economic austerity and prosperity events on suicide in Greece: a 30-year interrupted time-series analysis. BMJ Open, 5:e005619 doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2014-005619.
https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2014-005619
Chang, S-S., Gunnell, D., Sterne J., Lu, T-H and Cheng A. (2009). Was the economic crisis 1997-1998 responsible for suicide rates in East/Southeast Asia? A time-trend analysis for Japan, Hong Kong, South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore and Thailand. Social Science & Medicine 68, 1322–1331.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2009.01.010
Chang, S-S., Stuckler, D. Yip, P. and Gunnell, D. (2013). Impact of 2008 global economic crisis on suicide: time trend study in 54 countries. British Medical Journal 347, 1–15.
https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.f5239
Chishti P., Stone, D.H., Corcoran, P., Williamson, E. and Petridou, E. (2003). EUROSAVE Working Group: Suicide mortality in the European Union. European J Public Health, 13,108–114.
https://doi.org/10.1093/eurpub/13.2.108
Cooper, PN and Milroy CM (1995). The coroner's system and under-reporting of suicide. Med Sci Law 35(4), 319–26.
De Vogli, R., Marmot, M. and Stuckler, D. "Excess suicides and attempted suicides in Italy attributed to the great recession" Journa of Epidemiology and Community Health 67, 378–9.
Economou M., Madianos M., Theleritis C., Peppou L. E. and Stefanis, C. N. (2011). Increased suicidality amid economic crisis in Greece. Lancet 378, 1459.
https://doi.org/10.1016/s0140-6736(11)61638-3
EL. AS. (2014) Hellenic Police Annual Volumes 2000–2014.
EL.STAT. (2013). Annual data on deaths in Greece by age, sex and cause of death, 2000–2012- obtained after special request: http://www.statistics.gr/pls/apex/f?p=105:1030:3264446711800828::NO:
Gavrilova, N., Semyonova V., Evdokushkina G. and Gavrilov L. (2000). The response of violent mortality to economic crisis in Russia. Population Research and Policy Review 19, 397–419.
https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1010621601409
Joinpoint Regression Program. (2015). Version 4.2.0.1; Statistical Methodology and Applications Branch, Surveillance Research Program, National Cancer Institute.
Khang, Y-H., J.W. Lynch and G.A. Kaplan. (2005). Impact of economic crisis on cause specific mortality in South Korea. International Journal of Epidemiology 34, 1291–1301.
https://doi.org/10.1093/ije/dyi224
Kim H.J., Fay M.P., Feuer E.J. and Midthune, D.N. (2000). "Permutation tests for joinpoint regression with applications to cancer rates" Statistics in Medicine 19, 335–351: (correction: 2001;20:655).
Kwon, J.W., Chun, H. and Cho, S.I. (2009) A closer look at the increase in suicide rates in South Korea from 1986–2005.,BMC Public Health 9, 72–81.
https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2458-9-72
La Vecchia C., Lucchini, F. and Levi, F. (1994). Worldwide trends in suicide mortality, 1995–1989, Acta Psychiatr Scandinavica 90, 53–64.
Linsley, K.R., Schapira, K. and Kelly, T.P. (2001). Open verdict v suicide-importance to research. British Journal of Psychiatry 178, 465–468.
https://doi.org/10.1192/bjp.178.5.465
Lopez Bernal, J., A. Gasparini, C. Artundo and M. McKee. (2013). The effect of the late 2000s financial crisis on suicides in Spain: an interrupted time-series analysis. European Journal of Public Health 23(5), 732–736.
https://doi.org/10.1093/eurpub/ckt083
Madianos M., Alexiou, T., Patelakis, A. and Economou, M. (2014). Suicide, unemployment and other socioeconomic factors: evidence from the economic crisis in Greece. European Journal of Psychiatry 28 (1), 39–49.
https://doi.org/10.4321/S0213-61632014000100004
Madianos M., Economou M., Alexiou T. and Stefanis C. (2011). Depression and economic hardship across Greece in 2008 and 2009: two cross-sectional surveys nationwide. Soc. Psychiatr Epidemiol 46, 943–52.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s00127-010-0265-4
Phillips D. and Ruth T. (1993). Adequacy of official statistics for scientific research and public policy. Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior 23, 307–319.
Phillips, J.A. and Nugent, C.N. (2014). Suicide and Great Recession of 2007–2009: the role of economic factors in the 50 US states. Social Science and Medicine (116), 22–31.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2014.06.015
Rachiotis, G. Stuckler, D., McKee, M. and Hadjichristodoulou, C. (2015). What has happened to suicides during the Greek economic crisis? Findings from an ecological study of suicides and their determinants (2003–2012). BMJ Open 5.
https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2014-007295
Ryan, S. and Porth, L. (2007) A Tutorial on the Piecewise Regression Approach Applied to Bedload Transport Data, General Technical Report RMRS-GTR-189. available at: http://www.fs.fed.us/rm/pubs/rmrs_gtr189.pdf
Tøllefsen I.M, Hem, E. and Ekeberg Ø. (2012). The reliability of suicide statistics: a systematic review. BMC Psychiatry 12, 9.
https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-244X-12-9
Värnik P. (2012). Suicide in the world. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 9, 760–771.
https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph9030760
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| Published |
April 27, 2017
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| Issue | |
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Articles
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| Keywords | suicide, police statistics, data sources comparison, recession, Greece |
| How to Cite |
Tragaki, A., & Lenos, K. (2017). Suicide Rates in Greece: Comparing Mortality Data with Police Reporting Statistics and Investigating Recent Trends. Nordic Yearbook of Population Research, 51, 61-75. https://doi.org/10.23979/fypr.58961
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Copyright (c) 2017 Finnish Yearbook of Population Research  This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Authors who publish with the Nordic Yearbook of Population Research agree to the following terms:
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