Suicide in Canada and the United States: a Societal Comparison (IN: Suicide in Canada, edited by A A Leenaars, S Wenckstern, I Sakinofsky, R J Dyck, M J Kral & R C Bland)

This chapter questions the assumption that suicide rates & patterns are similar in Canada & the USA. The authors discuss the studies they have done & they offer some hypotheses to explain their findings. Results indicate that the suicide rate is higher in Canada than in the USA, with the shift occurring in the 1970s. Some factors that may contribute to this include differences in attitudes toward suicide, the decriminalization of attempted suicide in Canada, & differences in settlement patterns.