Men at greatest risk of suicide are those who try to conform to traditional social norms of masculinity, such as non-exposure of vulnerability or heightened emotional control.
- Researchers wanted to understand whether traditional norms of masculinity were linked to the higher risk of suicide in men than in women.
- To do this, researchers studied the responses to questionnaires from nearly 500 men.
- Men most at risk for suicide are those who conform strongly to traditional norms on factors such as controlling their emotions, being independent and taking risks.
There are more suicides among men than among women. Indeed, in 2017, there were 6,167 among the former, compared to 2,047 among the French female population, according to the national suicide prevention number website3114. Although men are more affected, not everyone runs the same risk.
Social pressure to be a man and suicide
Different factors can lead an individual to think about suicide. But, to explain this difference between the sexes, researchers from the University of Zurichin Switzerland, studied one criterion in particular: traditional social norms of masculinity. Their study has just been published in the journal Heliyon.
The researchers first wanted to identify this social pressure to be a man, in the traditional and patriarchal sense of the term. In other words: not showing vulnerability or emotions, independence, etc. “In our study, we wanted to analyze more closely which aspects of these ideologies play a role in suicide risk”, explains Andreas Walther, one of the authors, in a press release.
To do this, researchers studied the responses to questionnaires from nearly 500 men. These related to symptoms of depression, conformity to traditional masculine ideologies, and suicidal thoughts and behaviors. Among the participants, 13% had already attempted suicide.
Suicide risk higher among stoics
Based on this information, the 500 men were classified into three groups:
– Egalitarians, who represent 60% of participants and for whom conformity to traditional masculine ideologies is not important.
– Players, 15% of participants, who have an image of patriarchal masculinity but especially from a sexual point of view: they want to be perceived as heterosexual and have many sexual partners.
– The stoics, 25% of the men in the study and mostly composed of young people, who conform strongly to traditional norms on factors such as controlling their emotions, independence and taking risks, for example by driving fast or practicing extreme sports. The sexual aspect is not important.
Result: those who have the greatest risk of attempting suicide are the stoics, more than twice as high as among the egalitarians. On the other hand, the risk was not significantly increased for players.
“In stressful situations or in a mental health crisis, the attitudes of stoics are a very problematic combination, underlines Lukas Eggenberger, one of the authors. They say to themselves, ‘I can’t show my feelings and I have to solve my problems myself.’ Combined with the strong propensity for risk typical of the Stoics, this tendency can lead to a kind of tunnel vision, and suicide sometimes seems to be the only possible outcome.”.
The authors therefore recommend strengthening suicide prevention, by deploying interventions specifically adapted to Stoics, by increasing health professionals’ awareness of this type of profile.
