Suicide and Firearm Prevalence: are Youth Disproportionately Affected?

Regression analysis was used to examine the relationship between suicide rates & household firearm ownership for four age groups in the nine census regions of the United States from 1979-1994, adjusting for regional divorce rates, education, unemployment, & urbanicity. Results showed that firearm ownership levels are correlated with suicide rates among 15-24-year-olds & 65-84-year-olds, but not among 25-64-year-olds. The findings suggest that if the relationship is causal, a 10% fall in regional ownership levels would lead to a 3.0% decrease in suicide rates. (25 refs.)