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Abstract
Although the suicide rate of the elderly in South Korea is the highest among the OECD countries, limited studies have been conducted to address this issue. The purpose of this study was therefore to augment the existing research on elderly suicide in South Korea by testing the mediation roles of depression and family relationships on the relationship between economic hardship and suicidal ideation among the elderly. The Economic Hardship Measurement, the Scale for Suicidal Ideation(SSI), the Geriatric Depression Scale, and the Family Relationship Scale were employed in a sample of 534 elderly Koreans. It was found that depression had a partially mediating effect on the relationship between economic hardship and suicide ideation, while no significant effects were noted in the path between economic hardship and family relationships. Based on these results, practical solutions for the prevention of elderly suicide in South Korea are proposed.
Key Words: Elderly suicide, Depression, Family relationships, Economic hardship, Suicide ideation
1. Introduction
An aging society, changes in family structure, and other issues have led South Korean senior citizens to experience a variety of serious problems. One crucial index for expressing such difficulties is the suicide rate. According to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)[l], the suicide rate among elderly South Koreans was 33.3 per 10,000 in 2011, which is almost triple of the OECD average of 12.4. This figure is clearly indicative of the gravity of this issue for South Korean society. Based on the 2nd National Suicide Prevention Plan (2009-2013), the South Korean government selected and announced a set of 10 projects, which have been carried out by a total of 14 ministries, including the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the Ministry of Women and Family, and the Ministry of Education [2]. To support such policies, the results of research investigating the rate and causes of elderly suicide could be used as essential base data. However, scant research has been conducted in this regard, and there is therefore insufficient data for the development of suicide prevention policies.
To overcome this limitation, some researchers have analyzed suicidal ideation among the elderly to provide base data for suicide prevention policies[3]. Suicidal ideation refers to an individual's thoughts of committing suicide or hurting himself or herself[4]. Logically, suicidal...