Quote:
Originally Posted by Romulus
[I]Not 'out of the woods'
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Normally an increase in unemployment would see an increase in suicide. This is usually so predictable that the experts can predict how many deaths for each percentage point increase in unemployment. However nothing about the current situation in predictable.
I originally thought that the increase in welfare payments may be responsible, that the decrease in the financial stress usually caused by job loss may be the significant factor. There are some reports from the US that the increase in suicide has not happened there either. But their figures are distorted by the fact that their suicide rate has been increasing over recent years while unemployment has been decreasing.
It's always risky to attribute change to only one factor and I expect it will be years before we fully understand all the consequences of this epidemic.