Investigates all suicide attempts (n=13844) admitted to psychiatric centres in New South Wales & all certified suicides (n=3761) over a 6 year period. The relationship to suicidal behavior of age & rates, sex & means and age & means was tested. Findings show that on statistical grounds suicide attempts & suicides should be treated as continuous, not discrete categories and confirm that ratios of crude rates of suicidal behavior which ignore age & sex are meaningless.(MB)