노인의 자살생각 결정요인에 관한 연구 = A Study of the Determinants of Suicidal Ideation among the Elderly in Korea

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

This study examined the determinants of suicidal ideation among the elderly in Korea. The subjects were national random samples who were 65 years or older from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey in 1998, 2001, and 2005. Three Logit models were used to examine the determinants of suicidal ideation in terms of demographic characteristics, socioeconomic characteristics, health status, health-related behaviors, and healthcare utilization.
The proportion of the elderly who had suicidal ideation within previous 1 year was 30.5% in 2005, and 26.2% in 2001, and 33.6% in 1998. The elderly who assessed themselves as healthier were less likely to have suicidal ideation than the elderly who did not. and the elderly with a spouse were less likely to have suicidal ideation than the elderly without a spouse. Those who suffered from hypochondria or stress were more likely to have suicidal ideation than their counterparts.
This study suggests that government or policy makers should turn their attention to improving the physical health of the elderly and to preventing hypochondria or stress of the elderly in oder to decrease their suicide rate.