Protective factors against suicide among young-old Chinese outpatients

BACKGROUND: Suicide is common among the elderly worldwide. However, no literature could be found on the beliefs/expectations that protect young-old people from attempting suicide. The purpose of this study was to explore young-old outpatients’ reasons for not killing themselves in Taiwan. METHOD: Data for this qualitative descriptive study were extracted from a large research series. From the 83 elderly outpatients in the original sample, 31 were chosen for this study because they were young-old (65–74 years old) and from two randomly selected medical centers in northern Taiwan. Data on participants’ reasons for not killing themselves in unhappy situations were collected in individual interviews using a semi-structured guide and analyzed by content analysis. RESULTS: Analysis of interview data identified six major themes: satisfied with one’s life, suicide cannot resolve problems, fear of humiliating one’s children, religious beliefs, never thought about suicide, and living in harmony with nature. CONCLUSION: These identified protective factors (reasons for living) could be added to suicide-prevention programs for the elderly. Our findings may also serve as a reference for geriatric researchers in western countries with increasing numbers of elderly ethnic minority immigrants.