The Impact of Unemployment on Well-Being: Evidence from the Regional Level Suicide Data in Finland

We explore the effects of unemployment on the well-being of the regional population with disaggregated suicide data across gender and age in Finland during 1991–2011. On the basis of the economic theory of rational suicides we show that rising unemployment expectations have a negative effect on well-being by increasing regional suicide mortality. We find that a possible future job loss has a significant effect on the prime working-age male (35–64 years old) suicides. We also provide strong evidence of the social norms on unemployment in Finland. We find, especially, that working-age males suffer more heavily from unemployment if they live in the area where the regional unemployment is low relative to the national average.