The suicide rates of different groups are different and
relatively stable. This fact cautions against simplistic explanations and
quick-fixes for the problem of suicide. The global suicide rate remained
relatively stable from 1960 to 2000, however the gender gap widened.
In western and English speaking countries, the male suicide rate is
around 3 times greater than the female. Globally, there is an increase in
suicide rate with age, but in western and English speaking countries,
there is bimodality, with one peak for young adults and another for the
aged. The much publicised increase in suicide rate among the young
has receded since 1997. Individual nations have different, relatively
stable suicide rates. There are very high suicide rates among some
indigenous people (the Inuit of Canada and Greenland, the First
Nations of North America, the Maori of New Zealand and the
Aborigines of Australia), which can be attributed to exposure to a
“dominant culture”.
