Suicide and Religion

New Evidence on the Differences Between Protestantism and Catholicism

Dados Bibliográficos

ID2287690
AutoresBenno Torgler (0000-0002-9809-963X, School of Economics and Finance Queensland University of Technology), Christoph Schaltegger (Department of Economics University of Lucerne), Christoph A Schaltegger (0000-0002-1057-2809, autor correspondente)
Ano2014
Volume53
Fascículo2
Páginas316-340
Data de publicação2014-06-01
Peer ReviewedSim
Open AccessSim
TipoARTICLE
PeriódicoJournal for the Scientific Study of Religion (JOURNAL)
Identificadores do periódicoISSN: 0021-8294 • E-ISSN: 1468-5906
EditoraWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1111/jssr.12117
OpenAlexW1755855681
IdiomaEN
Citações recebidas16
Referências citadas63

Suicide has remained a persistent social phenomenon and now accounts for more deaths than motor vehicle accidents. There has been much debate, however, over which religious constructs might best explain the variation in suicide rates. Our empirical analysis reveals that even though theological and social differences between Catholicism and Protestantism have decreased, Catholics are still less likely than Protestants to commit or accept suicide. This difference holds even after we control for such confounding factors as social and religious networks. In addition, although religious networks do mitigate suicides among Protestants, the influence of church attendance is more dominant among Catholics. Our analysis also indicates that alternative concepts such as religious commitment and religiosity strongly reduce suicide acceptance

Attendance · Church attendance · Commit · Criminology · Poison control · Political science · Protestantism · Religiosity · Sociology · Suicide prevention · Suicide rates · Law · Medicine · Philosophy · Psychology · Religion and Society Interactions · Religion, Spirituality, and Psychology · Religious studies · Social Psychology · Suicide and Self-Harm Studies