Citation

Shibata H. Jpn. Sociol. Rev. 2014; 65(1): 116-133.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2014, Japan Sociological Society)

DOI

10.4057/jsr.65.116

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

In Japan, it is reported that the number of deaths by suicide caused by poverty or isolation have increased since 1998. The Japanese government, which is required to respect citizens' right to life by Article 13 of the Constitution, has a responsibility to prevent involuntary suicides by implementing social policies. What kind of social policies are effective in preventing suicides in Japan?In our study, we focused on active labor market policies (ALMPs), which provide job training, employment assistance, and employment subsidies. ALMPs have the function of socially and economically including isolated poor people by anchoring them to others (assistance staff or training participants) or the labor market. If those who are most at risk of suicide are isolated poor people, can ALMPs prevent their suicides in Japan? Or, conversely, do ALMPs tend to increase their risk of suicide? This study aimed to answer these questions empirically.This study analyzed broader panel data using a more elaborate estimation model than those used in previous studies. The results indicated that the rise or fall of the suicide rate was explained mainly by the rise or fall of the unemployment rate (i.e., the increase or decrease in the number of poor people), the rise or fall of the divorce rate, the fall or rise of the crude marriage rate (i.e., the increase or decrease in isolated people), and the fall or rise of public expenditure on ALMPs (i.e., neglect or inclusion of isolated poor people). In Japan, these factors explained about 10-32% of the change in the suicide rate from the rate in the previous year between 1991 and 2006. By contrast, other kinds of social policy apart from ALMPs did not show a significant suicide-preventive effect.

Language: ja