Statistics on Suicide and LDS Church Involvement in Males Age 15-34

Authors

Gilbert W. Fellingham
Kyle McBride
H. Dennis Tolley
Joseph L. Lyon

Keywords

Mormon studies, suicide, gender, social integration

Abstract

Suicide rates among young adults in the United States have been on the rise in the past four decades, with white males at greatest risk. In 1897, Emile Durkheim proposed that religion provided a source of social integration that decreased the likelihood of suicide. His hypothesis was based on research of religious affiliation and suicide rates in Europe. Pope's reanalysis of Durkheim's data, using covariates such as economic status, casts doubt on Durkheim's interpretation of the data. However, others have suggested that religious affiliation is an important factor in the study of suicide, and studies including religious measures other than religious affiliation have usually found an inverse association between religious activity and suicide. Specifically, Stack studied the association of church attendance and suicide and found it most significantly related in young adults, the group with the greatest decline in church attendance.

Recommended Citation

Fellingham, Gilbert W.; McBride, Kyle; Tolley, H. Dennis; and Lyon, Joseph L. (2000) "Statistics on Suicide and LDS Church Involvement in Males Age 15-34," BYU Studies Quarterly: Vol. 39: Iss. 2, Article 5.
Available at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/byusq/vol39/iss2/5