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Suicide and Ethnic Factors in Canada

Article  in  International Journal of Social Psychiatry · February 1986

DOI: 10.1177/002076408603200308 · Source: PubMed

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 SUICIDE AND ETHNIC FACTORS
IN CANADA

By
FRANK TROVATO, Ph.D.
Department of Sociology
The University of Alberta
Edmonton, Alberta,
Canada T6G 2H4

ABSTRACT

A neglected area of sociological investigation is the relationship between ethnic factors and
suicide mortality. This paper explores this topic among immigrant-ethnic groups in Canada.
Three hypotheses are evaluated: (1) the assimilation thesis, which posits that the greater the
degree of social assimilation among immigrant-ethnic groups, the greater the suicide rate;
(2) the ethnic community integration explanation, which predicts that ethnic groups with strong
degrees of community cohesiveness share reduced odds in their incidence of suicide; and (3)
the socioeconomic hypothesis, which accounts for observed differences in suicide on the basis
of discrepancies in socioeconomic well-being. The results of a multiple regression analysis
provide empirical support for hypotheses (1) and (2). The findings are discussed in the con-
text of multiculturalism and the propensities for sociocultural groups to commit suicide dur-
ing the processes of assimilation and adjustment to the larger society.

INTRODUCTION

Canadian sociologists have studied many dimensions of ethnic diversity and sociological pro-
cesses that are common to immigrants and their descendants, such as absorption, adaptation,
and assimilation. One important aspect of immigrants and ethnic groups that has not received
much attention is the phenomenon of suicide. Immigration represents a significant change
in peoples’ lives and therefore, some degree of psychological distress is usually associated
with the processes of absorption, adaptation and assimilation to the receiving society. The
presence of numerous sociocultural groups in Canada could lead to some differences in suicide
rate, partly due to the differential cultural backgrounds of ethnic groups and their orienta-
tions to this extreme act, and partly due to group differences in the propensity to assimilate
to the host nation. The purpose of this study is to provide an empirical analysis of the rela-
tionship between three key dimensions of ethnicity and their association with suicide: social
assimilation, ethnic community integration, and socioeconomic status.

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 DEVELOPMENT OF HYPOTHESES

Social Assimilation and Suicide

Ethnic and immigrant groups are faced with innumerable pressures to assimilate to the domi-
nant society. The Chicago school of sociology, exemplified by the early works of Park (1950),
suggests that despite the fact that groups tend to assimilate at varying speeds, assimilation
is an inevitable process (Gordon, 1964; Alba, 1976).
A competing perspective to the Chicago model of race and ethnic relations is that of the
emergent ethnicity school (Yancey al., 1976; Yinger, 1985; 1981). Proponents of this
et
theoretical perspective subscribe to the premise that ethnic groups do assimilate in some aspects,
but at the same time, maintain persistent features of their unique ethnic background. Also,
new ethnic features emerge as groups change and adapt to the larger society. Yinger (1981)
refers to this as a process of assimilation and &dquo;dissimilation&dquo;. Ethnicity has the ability to
persist in various forms even though the general expectation among sociologists has been
one of a diminishing importance of ethnicity in contemporary society (Darroch and Marston,

1984).
Concerning suicide mortality, the Chicago school orientation would not only suggest that
the process of assimilation is inevitable, but it would also predict that it is essentially a stressful
event; that is, the individual is characterized as being &dquo;pulled&dquo; by two opposing forces: the
ethnic group and the larger society. In a Durkheimian sense, this process implies that the
individual undergoes some degree of anomie during the assimilation transition; it assumes
an erosion of social integration within the ethnic group itself. As members of the group embrace
the values of the dominant society, they are likely to question and to relinquish the value
system of their ethnic subculture, thus straining the social integrity of the ethnic group. The
first hypothesis in this study is, therefore, that the greater the degree of social assimilation,
the higher the suicide rate.
The emergent ethnicity perspective suggests an opposing hypothesis: that there is no empirical
relationship between social assimilation and the likelihood of suicide. The underlying assumption
of this prediction is that assimilation, if it occurs, does not necessarily cast the individual
into a state of anomie and severe psychological stress because some degree of ethnic con-
tinuity and allegiance to the group is always maintained. Some of the more relevant mechanisms
associated with the maintenance of integration to the group are ethnic kin, family networks,
and social supports. In other words, the tendency to assimilate does not necesarily imply the
complete separation of the individual from his ethnic community.
Ethnic Community Integration and Suicide
Immigrants in their adoptive nations are known to establish cohesive communities during the
initial stages of the immigration experience (Macdonald and Macdonald, 1964; Breton, 1964;
Trlin, 1976). An essential function of the ethnic-immigrant community is to provide the
individual with a set of social and institutional affiliations which ultimately serve to provide
effective coping mechanisms that buffer the social psychological stresses associated with life
in the new society. According to Breton (1964), the greater the degree of institutional com-
pleteness of ethnic communities, the greater their ability to provide members with a strong
sense of belonging and adjustment to society in general.
Available research concerning immigration and suicide suggests that immigrant-ethnic groups
differ in their abilities to deter suicide among their members (Trovato and Jarvis, 1986;
Whitlock, 1971; Kushner, 1984; Stack, 1982). In Australia, Whitlock reported findings that

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are consistent wtih Trovato and Jarvis’ results for Canadian immigrant groups: those groups
that are known to possess high degrees of institutional completeness, hence high levels of
social integration, and share relatively lower risks of suicide (e.g., Italians, Portugese and
Irish); groups that are characterized by low degrees of community cohesiveness have relatively
higher rates of suicide mortality (e.g., English-Welsh, Scottish, Germans and Americans).
Therefore, a second hypothesis to be evaluated in this study is that the greater degree of ethnic
community integration, the lower the suicide rate.
Socioeconomic Status and Suicide
Although socioeconomic status is recognized in the sociological literature as being one of

the most important determinants of social action, its relationship with suicide remains a topic
for further exploration and specification. For example, Barnes (1975) responded to the con-
tention of previous analysts that income is positively associated with self-destruction, by presen-
ting evidence to show that the partial effect of income (as a proxy for socioeconomic position),
is always negatively related to suicide. Stack (1982:46), in his review of the literature on
economic approaches to suicide indicates that &dquo;suicide can be approached from the stand-
point of a costs-benefit problem. If the perceived costs of continuing one’s life outweigh the
benefits of ending it, the probability of suicide increases. Groups experiencing unfavourable
economic conditions are more apt than others to perceive relatively high costs from continued
living. These groups include the poor and the unemployed. The material pressures experienced
by such groups increase their propensity toward suicide&dquo;. Analysts in the past have tended
to view socioeconomic factors (such as income), to be directly associated with suicide. More
recent evidence in the industrialized world provides indication that the higher the socioeconomic
well-being, the lower the rate of suicide (Maris, 1969; 1981; Gibbs, 1968; Lester, 1983;
Stack, 1982). Ethnic-immigrant groups in Canada are not homogeneous in their socioeconomic
attainments (Richmond and Kalbach, 1980; Boyd et al., 1980); therefore, it is hypothesized
that the higher the socioeconomic status, the lower the mortality rate due to suicide.

DATA AND METHODS OF ANALYSIS

The data in this study consist of aggregated information on nine ethnic-immigrant categories
in Canada during 1971 and 1981. The mortality data were initially provided by Statistics Canada
in the form of a multidimensional crosstabulation involving suicide deaths and immigrant class
in 1971 and 1981 (English-Welsh; American Scottish; Irish, German, Italian; Portugese; Other
foreign born, and Native born). Corresponding population denominators for the same con-
figuration of crossclassified variables were obtained from the decennial censuses of Canada
for 1971 and 1981.
In order to operationalize the three hypotheses, a series of aggregated social demographic
characteristics were compiled from the two censuses and appended to the mortality data set.
The variables are: (1) using English as the language most often spoken in the home; (2) reporting
English as their mother tongue; (3) Roman Catholicism; (4) living in urban areas; (5) having
university education; (6) employed full time in the civilian labor force; (7) average family
income; (8) average household size.
Factor analysis was employed with these eight predictor variables. The factor solution iden-
tified three underlying constructs which are interpreted to be &dquo;social assimilation&dquo;, &dquo;ethnic
community integration&dquo;, and &dquo;socioeconmic status.&dquo; The multivariate equation consists of

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 suicide rates regressed on these three factors along with a time variable to take into account
changes in observations between 1971 and 1981.

RESULTS

Table 1 displays the Pearson Product-Moment intercorrelation matrix for all the variables
in the analysis, along with their respective means and standard deviations. Each of the predictor
variables, including time, is significantly associated with the suicide rate. However, the
magnitudes and direction of the zero-order correlations are not uniform. For example, the
Catholic measure, the percent urban, household size, and the percent employed, show inverse
associations with the dependent variable. On the other hand, time, the two language measures,
and the socioeconomic variables (education and income), demonstrate positive relationships
with suicide. These results are based on zero-order associations and substantive conclusions
are unwarranted at this stage of the analysis.

It is interesting to note that assimilation, as measured by the propensity to speak English

as opposed to other languages, implies an increase in suicide mortality. Concerning
socioeconomic status, the preliminary evidence is that there may be a positive, rather than
the expected inverse association with suicide. These tentative conclusions must be scrutinized
further with the application of a multivariate methodology. It may be that when all variables
are considered simultaneously, these initial relationships will change in magnitude, in direc-

tion, and possibly in their significance levels.

The intercorrelation matrix demonstrates also that some of the variables are highly inter-
related, thus providing some indication that there may be common underlying factors specific
to the measures in the table. In order to ascertain this possibility, a factor analysis was executed
employing a principal component extraction solution with varimax orthogonal rotation.
Three factors are identified by the results in Table 2. The first underlying construct is con-
sidered to be social assimilation due to the direction and magnitude of the variables that cor-
relate with it. Language of the home (% who speak English) and English mother tongue share
strong direct linear relationships with the underlying construct. Researchers in Canada have
often used these two measures to denote the extent to which ethnic groups are assimilating
to the Anglo-Saxon culture. Household size and percent Catholic are inversely related to the
factor under discussion.
It can be argued that groups which have large families are less likely to be assimilated to
the dominant culture. Given the pervasiveness of low fertility values in Canada, and the tendency
for households to consist of small nuclear families, groups that deviate from this overall pat-
tern are not likely to share strong assimilative tendencies. In Canada, some of the ethnic groups
that seem to be the most resistant to rapid assimilation appear to be of Catholic background,
such as Italians, French and Portugese. Therefore, to the extent that the Catholic measure
reflects this principle, it should correlate inversely with the social assimilation factor. Employ-
ment is positively associated with the social assimilation construct. The greater one’s integra-
tion into the civilian labor force. the greater the likelihood of exposure to the common values
and ideals inherent in the normative structure of the larger society, hence, the greater the
level of assimilation.
Factor II is assumed to reflect a measure of ethnic community integration. As would be
expected, Catholic background is directly associated with this construct. Catholic

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immigrant-ethnic communities are generally more cohesive and institutionally complete than
most other ethnic groups (Trovato and Jarvis, 1986). Not surprisingly, the language variables
show inverse correlations as well: the greater the propensity to speak English in the home
and to give English as the mother tongue, the lower one’s ties to the ethnic community. Also,
the higher one’s educational attainment, the lower one’s identification with, and integration
to the ethnic community. The positive and strong correlation of the urban variable is quite
consistent with the notion of ethnic community integration because in Canada most ethnic
communities are situated in large urban centres where a multitude of social and economic
amenities prevail.
The third construct is socioeconomic status. In accordance with expectation, both income
and education measures correlate directly with this underlying factor.

TABLE 2

*Used Principal Component Extraction with Vat~imax Orthogonal Rotation.

NOTE: The coding of variables is as follows:
(1) LANGHOME = % that speaks English in the home;
(2) HOUSESIZE = Average Household Size;
(3) EMP =
% employed in full time labour force;
(4) ENGMTG % English Mother Tongue;
=

(5) CATH %
=
Roman Catholic;
(6) URBAN = % in Urban Areas;
(7) UNIVED = % University Educated;
(8) FAMINC = Average Family Income
Observations are based on 1971 and 1981 Censuses.

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 The question of concern is whether differences in suicide rates among Canadian immigrant-ethnic
groups can be explained by the three factors, social assimilation, ethnic community integration,
and socioeconomic status. Furthermore, we are interested in determining the relative importance
of these three constructs in predicting suicide differentials.
Table 3 displays the results of a multiple regression analysis. While the effects in the equation
are all in the expected direc,~tion, only two of them are statistically significant. The community integra-

tion factor has a substantial inverse effect on the likelihood of committing suicide, with a standar-
dized beta weight of -.684, thus supporting the hypothesis that the higher the degree of ethnic
community integration among Canada’s immigrant-ethnic groups, the lower the rate of suicide.
It was anticipated that social assimilation would be positively associated with the chances of suicide.
The regression results support this prediction (B .364). In substantive terms, this implies that
=

groups that are more assimilated to the dominant culture experience greater risk of suicide than
groups that are less assimilated. Thus the more a group is able to maintain its ethnic viability and
traditions, the lower the suicide mortality rate for that group.
While assimilation may have a variety of positive outcomes for individuals, the process of embracing
the culture of the host society entails some psychological costs. Quite often, the individual in this
process is cast in a marginal position where the person belongs to neither the ethnic group nor
the larger society (Stonequist, 1937; Starr, 1977; Smith, 1980). This state of affairs may induce
extreme psychological distress and possibly suicide.

Socioeconomic status is not statistically significant in its impact on self-destruction, but it is interesting
sign of the relationship is consistent with Bames’ (1975) contention that while the
to note that the

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zero-order correlation with suicide may be positive, the partial effect is always negative (B -.419).
=

Using the regression coefficients in the equation, it can be demonstrated that the community integra-
tion factor is an important deterrent to the likelihood of suicide. Even though assimilation increases
suicide, a unit increase in community integration has the effect of reducing the mean of the suicide
rate by 7.48, while the assimilation factor has an incremental effect to the mean of only 3.99.
Therefore, Canada as a multicultural society poses a certain dilemma for its sociocultural groups:
it allows them the opportunity to establish and maintain their own unique communities, serves to
integrate members to the group, and to buffer them from the &dquo;shocks&dquo; associated with assimilation
and the absorption process; on the other hand, the larger society produces a multitude of ‘ ‘forces&dquo;
which often serve to promote the erosion of ethnic continuity through such processes as upward
mobility and social assimilation. One of the most extreme results of assimilation is marginality which
may often lead to suicide. Given the existence of numerous social forces in society, the propensity
of immigrant-ethnic groups to experience suicide is largely determined by their degree of success
in providing strong integrative mechanisms for their members that serve to buffer them from extreme
psychological distress.

CONCLUSIONS AND DISCUSSION

This study provides a multivariate analysis of the relationship between suicide and three ethnic fac-
tors : socialassimilation, community integration, and socioeconomic position. It was hypothesized
that assimilation would increase the chances of committing suicide, ethnic community integration
would decrease suicide, while socioeconomic position would show an inverse link with self-destruction.
The empirical results provide strong support for the assimilation and community integration theses,
but no support for socioeconomic effect.
In a multiethnic society, in which immigration and ethnicity are important dimensions of the social
structure, the existence of a multicultural ideology does not necessarily prevent ethnic groups from
assimilating along such dimensions as language transfer, aculturation, amalgamation and structural
integration (Gordon, 1964) to the larger society. Often, the assimilation experience casts ethnic
members in marginal positions, caught between two worlds with contrasting value systems (Stone-
quist, 1937; Park, 1950). In a Durkheimian sense, this situation may be described as a state
characterized by anomie. For the individual, assimilation may involve the abandonment of the ethnic
subculture with its traditions and values, and the concomitant adoption of the value system of the
larger society, without, however, being fully accepted by the receiving group. Durkheim (1951)
reasoned that in such a situation there is a loss of social integration: The individual is left to his
own devices to cope with a rapidly changing life situation. For a certain number of people the

end result of the assimilation process may be heightened levels of psychological distress and possibly
suicide.
Multiculturalism provides an indirect buffer to this tendency by promoting the importance of
ethnicity. Groups are able to establish and maintain cohesive ethnic communities, which among
other things, serve to &dquo;shelter&dquo; the individual from severe states of anomie. Thus multicultural
societies present two opposing forces in the lives of individuals. On the one hand, the advanced
nature of such societies contain a variety of mechanisms that promote assimilation and thus increase
the propensity to suicide; on the other hand, they reduce suicide by allowing ethnicity to play a
dominant role in the social experience of sociocultural groups. Our results suggest that this latter
feature of society is relatively more important than either assimilation and socioeconomic discrepancies
in explaining suicide differences in Canada.

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 From a theoretical perspective, the findings of this analysis are more consistent with the postulates
of the emergent ethnicity school of ethnic relations (Yancey et al., 1976; Yinger, 1985; 1981; Dar-
roch and Marston, 1984). The Chicago school orientation is less consistent with the findings reported
in this study. This theoretical perspective would predict that assimilation is the most dominant fac-
tor in predicting suicide among sociocultural groups. In advanced societies ethnicity is presumed
to have a diminished relevance for individuals. Ethnic community factors would not be considered
as important in combating suicide tendencies to the degree observed in this research. The emergent

ethnicity theorists would ascribe to the idea that even in advanced societies, with its many forces
and contradictions, ethnicity would not necessarily lose its importance in influencing and regulating
social action. The fact that the ethnic community integration factor is found to be a strong inhibitor
of suicide in relation to assimilation, suggests that ethnic members may assimilate in some dimen-
sions, but at the same time, ethnic community affiliations play a dominant role in preventing
psychological distress and suicide.

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 REFERENCES

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