Financial loss and suicidal ideation in a rural community sample

Objective: To examine the prevalence and correlates of suicidal ideation in a community-based rural sample. Method: The sample was a random sample of people living in a single county in Iowa. Participants aged 18 or older (n =1617) were asked about suicidal ideation in the past year as well as mood, alcohol use, social support, and stressful life events. Results: About 8.2% of the sample reported suicidal ideation. Depressive symptoms, problems resulting from alcohol use, infrequent social contact and financial loss characterized the suicidal group. Conclusion: Depressive symptoms were the strongest correlate of suicidal ideation in this rural sample. In the multivariate analysis, financial loss rather than low income remained a significant correlate of suicidal ideation after controlling for depression. This suggests that change in financial status rather than chronic poverty poses a risk for suicidal ideation.