Assistant Professor, Department of Nursing, Mokpo National University, 1666, Yeongsan-ro, Cheonggye-myeon, Muan-gun, Jeollanam-do
*Corresponding Author: Sun Kyung Kim, skkim@mokpo.ac.kr
Online published on 27 March, 2020.
The rate of suicide has been of great concern in Korean society and is more problematic among elders living alone. Knowing the gender difference, the present study investigated factors influencing suicidal ideation among male elders living alone.
A cross-sectional study was conducted using data on 2, 295 male elders living alone from the Community Health Survey in 2013. Pearson's correlation analysis and path analysis were conducted using SPSS 25.0 and Amos 25.0.
Most variables showed statistically significant but week correlation with suicidal ideation. In the path model, examined factors explained 43.1% of suicidal ideation, 48.3% of psychological distress, and 53.2% of physical health. Psychological distress was the only factor with a statistically significant influence on suicidal ideation.
The present study revealed the importance of socioeconomic status among male elders and psychological distress had the biggest impact on suicidal ideation. Well-designed interventions to reduce psychological distress with effort to incorporate gender-specific factors may alleviate the risk of suicidal ideation among male elders living alone.
Elderly, Living alone, Prediction model, Community, Suicidal Ideation
