YOUTH SUICIDE IN MONTANA: Guns Are the Method of Choice.

AuthorHerling, Daphne
PositionTRENDING

Montana persistently ranks in the top three states with the most youth who die by suicide--and their method of choice is overwhelmingly firearms. Preventing youth from killing themselves should and must be a priority, yet nothing sets off an ideological firestorm like the mention of gun regulation in America. It is difficult to talk about youth suicide without addressing the means most often used though, and the only way to ensure that a young person doesn't use a gun to kill themselves is to prevent access to one.

Youth suicide prevention requires a multifaceted approach. However, the fact remains that from 2014-16, 62 percent of Montanans who died by suicide used a gun. While the percentage of firearms used by Montanans to successfully kill themselves has stayed consistently high for years, the numbers of people dying has risen significantly (Figure 1).

Using a gun as a means to kill oneself is significant because people are far more likely to die using a firearm than from any other means--83 percent of suicide attempts using a firearm results in death. This is particularly important because if someone survives a suicide attempt they are unlikely to try again. Among those who have attempted suicide, 70 percent make no further attempts.

Youth Suicide and Firearms

Nationally, 39 percent of youth ages 11 to 17 have used a firearm to kill themselves. In Montana, that number is significantly higher (63 percent). Figure 2 shows the rates at which male and female youth in Montana die using a firearm versus the United States as a whole. It's important to note not only the rate by which both males and females kill themselves with firearms, but the significant difference in the rate between girls in Montana and girls overall: Girls in Montana kill themselves at a rate that's six times higher than the rest of the country.

What means people choose is a complex interaction of seriousness of intent, availability of means, cultural norms or acceptability of means and preconceived notions of lethality. Choosing a firearm has a high potential for success (seriousness). Guns also are readily available--42 percent of Americans and 58 percent of Montanans live in a household with a gun--and firearms are culturally acceptable (the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution enshrines the right to keep and bear arms). Thus, culture plays a large part in what means are chosen, especially in the context of youth suicide in Montana.

Growing up with firearms does...

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