Résumé
Objective:Compare the characteristics of male and female suicide attempters with the goal of explaining the significantly higher rates of suicide attempts in women.Method:Investigators who were rigorously trained in the research schedule assessed 326 serious suicide attempters (248 women and 78 men) treated in the emergency rooms of general hospitals and conducted an examination to determine the psychiatric diagnosis (based on DSM-IV criteria).Results:Most characteristics were similar in male and female attempters: age, family financial status and characteristics, number of prior suicide attempts, method used in the attempt, suicidal intent, number and psychological effect of negative life events, and rate of mental illness. The three most frequent negative life events were the same for men and women: marital conflict, major changes in daily routines, and financial difficulties. But compared to male attempters, female attempters had lower educational achievement, were more likely to be currently married, were more likely to have been working at the time of the attempt, had younger co-resident family members, had less contact with adult family members in the month before the attempt, and were less likely to have alcohol dependence (p's all