Men account for three in every four suicide deaths in Australia and many nations worldwide. Whilst mood disorders and acute substance use are clear risk factors for suicide in men, intimate relationship problems including relationship discord, breakdown, separation and divorce routinely precipitate suicidality in men. This problem appears to be worsening: the latest Australian data highlight relationship issues were the most common risk factor for suicide in men aged 25-44, replacing mood disorders for the first time (ABS, 2023). Improving our understanding of how and why relationship problems feature so commonly in pathways to suicide among men is critical to tailoring programmatic supports to help men navigate relational problems and prevent suicide.
This symposium will uniquely highlight research across industry and academia, and a lived experience perspective, regarding the role of relationship problems and breakdown in men’s suicidality. Firstly, data from the Relationships Australia (RA) national survey of relationship indicators will be presented to highlight the challenges many men face creating strong emotional and social bonds and the isolating effect of relationship breakdown on men. Next, data obtained from nine months of client screening across RA’s relationship counselling services (services not funded or specifically equipped for suicide prevention) in South Australia and Tasmania will be presented. Data from 3,447 clients across 38 services highlighted that 39.1% of clients had felt suicidal in their life, with 24.0% reporting current suicidal ideation. These results will be extended by discussion of results from a systematic review and meta-analysis of men’s risk of suicide, suicide attempt, and suicidal ideation following relationship breakdown, and evidence for the individual, psychosocial and circumstantial factors underpinning pathways to suicidality. In this study, separated men under age 35 were found to be over eight times more likely to suicide than their married counterparts. Finally, a lived experience perspective from Joey Fry (from "The Great Separation" on SBS) will add critical depth and nuance to our understanding of the contexts and complexities of relationship breakdown as a catalyst for suicide in men.
The experience of relationship problems and breakdown are universal, and inevitable human experiences across the life course. The predominance of relational stressors in men’s pathways to suicidality demands a unified approach to improve our understanding of this complex problem, and aid suicide prevention for men.