Citation

Ziegenfus RC. Pennsylvania Geographer 2020; 58(2): 55-75.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2020)

DOI

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PMID

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Abstract

Deaths of despair are deaths caused by suicide, alcohol abuse, and drug overdoses. Age-adjusted data were analyzed for these causes individually and collectively. Maps and graphs depict the temporal and spatial aspects of these rates for Pennsylvania counties. The two regions with the greatest concentration of deaths from the despair causes are southwestern and northeastern Pennsylvania. Nineteen socioeconomic variables were examined to determine the primary correlates for each despair cause. Of these, percent in poverty with low levels of education, percent old housing, percent public insurance coverage (Medicaid/Medicare), percent unemployed and percent dis-ability were positively associated with despair deaths. © 2020, Pennsylvania Geographical Society. All rights reserved.

Language: en

Keywords

United States; suicide; Suicide; Alcohol; Pennsylvania; mortality; Despair; Drugs; alcohol consumption; statistical analysis; drug user; spatial analysis; Death rates