TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2016//
TI  - Religiosity as a protective factor against suicidal behaviour
JO  - Acta psychiatrica Scandinavica
A1  - Davidson, Michael
A1  - Werbeloff, N.
A1  - Levav, Itzhak
A1  - Dohrenwend, B. P.
A1  - Burshtein, S.
A1  - Weiser, M.
SP  - 481
EP  - 488
VL  - 133
IS  - 6
N2  - OBJECTIVE: Data suggest that adherence to religious beliefs is associated with lower rates of suicide. A number of mediating factors have been hypothesized to explain this association, including enhanced social support, less substance abuse, and lower rates of psychopathology. <br><br>METHOD: We utilized data from a two-phase population-based, epidemiological study of mental disorders among young Jewish Israel born in a 10-year birth-cohort conducted in the 1980s. This study included data on religiosity and suicidal behaviour. Twenty-five years thereafter, mortality data were obtained from a national vital statistics registry. <br><br>RESULTS: Rates of suicidal ideation were similar among secular, partially observant, and religious subjects (9.4%, 6.7%, and 6.2%, respectively; adjusted OR for linear trend: 0.80, 95% CI: 0.58-1.09). Rates of suicide attempts were significantly lower among religious subjects (2.4%, 2.5%, and 0.4% for secular, partially observant, and religious, respectively; adjusted OR for linear trend: 0.62, 95% CI: 0.43-0.88). Of the 4914 subjects, eight died by suicide: Seven of them were secular and one was partially observant (χ(2) = 2.52, P = 0.09). There were no differences in social functioning or rates of psychopathology among the study groups. <br><br>CONCLUSION: Religiosity has a protective effect against suicide attempts, which is independent of social functioning, psychopathology, and substance use.<br><br>© 2016 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 0001-690X
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/acps.12555
ID  - ref1
ER  -