Suicide among the Elderly: Isolating Widowhood and Mitigating Alternatives

Although the association between widowhood status and suicide has been well documented, the conditions which modify this relationship have not been extensively investigated. The present study of elderly persons uses information obtained from two sources: (1) a representative sample of the aged in Pinellas County, Florida, in 1959; and (2) persons aged 65 and over who committed suicide in that county between 1955 and 1963. The major findings are (1) the widowed exhibit higher suicide rates than the married; (2) this differential is partially explained by the greater social isolation of the widowed, particularly the widowers; (3) the widowed can find in other types of relationships meaningful alternatives to marriage which help prevent suicidal behavior; (4) widowers have greater difficulty than widows in making effective substitutions for the loss of spouse; and (5) there appear to be limits to the effective mitigation of these alternatives for the widowed, especially the widower. These findings, interpreted in terms of cultural expectations and sex-role definitions, suggest the fruitfulness of further research on other types of functional alternatives for the widowed. Programs for suicide prevention among the elderly should give special attention to the precarious position of the aged widower.