The sociodemographic & clinical characteristics of 144 suicide attempters admitted to a Turkish emergency clinic were examined. All patients were interviewed by a consultant psychiatrist. The majority of suicide attempters were females, characterised by low educational status & low religious orientation. Drug overdose was the most common method of attempt & conflict within the family was the most frequent psychological stress factor. Three-quarters of the sample met DSM-IV criteria for at least one psychiatric diagnosis. Suicide attempters with depression tended to be immigrant, urban dwellers with high scores on the suicide intent scale. (33 refs.)