The debt crisis, austerity measures, and suicide in Greece

Background How are economic downturns and suicide related? Objective This study examines the link between economically driven austerity measures implemented during a recent economic downturn-the Greek debt crisis-and suicide for the population as a whole, as well as for men and women separately. Methods Utilizing a 50-nation panel containing annual suicide counts and population demographics for the years 1995-2015 from the World Health Organization's Mortality archive, the analysis employs a synthetic control design, a quasi-experimental approach that allows us to causally model the relationship between Greece's International Monetary Fund-imposed austerity measures and suicide, something that has hampered prior research efforts. Results Findings show austerity policies corresponded with increased suicide rates in Greece for the population as a whole and for men and women. Robustness tests confirm these results. Conclusions We discuss the implications of the findings for the current economic crisis associated with the COVID-19 pandemic.