Suicides by Gender
Suicide Deaths in Rhode Island, by Age and Sex, 2016-2020
Click on the tabs in the left-hand column below to see the data displayed by count, percent, and rate per 100,000.
* Percent for females <25 is suppressed due to RIDOH’s small number policy. Percent not reported due to small numerator and relative standard error that is >30%.
* 0% for females <25
*Percent for females <25 is suppressed due to RIDOH’s small number policy. Percent not reported due to small numerator and relative standard error that is >30%.
Notes: Data include suicide deaths that occurred in Rhode Island among Rhode Island residents. In compliance with RIDOH’s Small Number Reporting Policy, counts of less than five are not shown. Any use of counts to calculate rates and proportions is subject to RIDOH’s Small Number Reporting Policy available at health.ri.gov/publications/policies/smallnumbersreporting.pdf. Rates are calculated using the 2010 Rhode Island Census population estimates
Not reported because of small numbers: Females <25 years old (percent and rate).
Discussion
Suicide, sex, and gender identity
More males die by suicide than females. The rate of suicide deaths among males in Rhode Island for 2016-2020 was about 3.3 times higher than for females. When we look at age and gender, we see that, for both males and females, the highest rate of suicide deaths is observed among those ages 55-64 (27.7 deaths per 100,000 males in this age group and 10.0 deaths per 100,000 females in this age group). For males, the second highest rate was observed for those ages 65 and older (22.7 deaths per 100,000), while the second highest rate for females was observed among those ages 35-44 (7.7 deaths per 100,000).
The chart shows these data. Under “Count,” we can see the total number of males and females who died by suicide in each age group in 2016-2020. Count shows us that many more males than females died by suicide in every age group.
It is also important to understand groups not represented in Rhode Island’s Violent Death Reporting System (RIVDRS) data, due to data limitations and small numbers. What is called “sex” in RIVDRS refers to the victim’s gender identity at the time of their death, and it includes transgender identities (people whose gender identity does not correspond to that assigned to them at birth). There is a separate variable for noting if a victim of suicide was transgender, and a person can be identified as “male” or “female” and also “transgender.” Transgender suicide deaths are not separated out in these visualizations, due to the Department of Health’s small numbers policy; however, they are included as “males” or “females” depending on the identity that the person held. We recognize that this is a limitation in the dataset for people who identify as non-binary or another identity.
Rhode Island is not able to evaluate transgender suicide rates due to small numbers; however, national evidence tells us that transgender women, men, girls, boys, and non-binary people are more likely than cisgender people to attempt and to die by suicide. Read more about who is most at risk for suicide in Rhode Island. More research is needed on the mental health and life experiences of transgender and non-binary people.
It is also important to understand groups not represented in Rhode Island’s National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS) data, due to data limitations and small numbers. What is called “sex” in NVDRS refers to the victim’s gender identity at the time of their death, and it includes transgender identities (people whose gender identity does not correspond to that assigned to them at birth). There is a separate variable for noting if a victim of suicide was transgender, and a person can be identified as “male” or “female” and also “transgender.” Transgender suicide deaths are not separated out in these visualizations, due to the Department of Health’s small numbers policy; however, they are included as “males” or “females” depending on the identity that the person held. We recognize that this is a limitation in the dataset for people who identify as non-binary or another identity.
Rhode Island is not able to evaluate transgender suicide rates due to small numbers; however, national evidence tells us that transgender women, men, girls, boys, and non-binary people are more likely than cisgender people to attempt and to die by suicide. You can read more about that here. More research is needed on the mental health and life experiences of transgender and non-binary people. To understand why males die by suicide at a higher rate than females, you can start reading here.
Tips for understanding the data on this page
It’s helpful to understand what some of the data terms mean. Here is information about percentages and rates.
Percentages tell us how many people have died by suicide compared to the whole group of people.
Rates tell us how many people have died by suicide compared to a larger group, taking into account the population size of that group. For instance, when we look at rates by sex and age, we see the rate of suicide deaths among males ages 65 and older is about 5 times higher than the rate among females ages 65 and older. Females make up slightly more of the Rhode Island population (51.7%); however, more suicide deaths occurred among males compared to females in all age groups, thus the observed rates are higher among males