title: Personality and suicide risk: the impact of economic crisis in Japan.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The interactive effect of personal factors and social factors upon suicide risk is unclear. We conducted prospective cohort study to investigate whether the impact of the economic crisis in 1997-1998 upon suicide risk differed according to Neuroticism and Psychoticism personality traits.
  
  
  METHODS
  The Miyagi Cohort Study in Japan with a follow-up for 19 years from 1990 to 2008 has 29,432 subjects aged 40-64 years at baseline who completed a questionnaire about various health habits and the Japanese version of the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire - Revised Short Form in 1990.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The suicide mortality rate increased from 4.6 per 100,000 person-years before 1998 to 27.8 after 1998. Although both Neuroticism and Psychoticism were significantly associated with an increased risk of mortality during the whole period from 1990 to 2008, the impact of the economic crisis upon suicide risk differed between the Neuroticism and Psychoticism personality traits. Compared with the lowest category, the hazard ratios (HRs) for the highest Neuroticism increased from 0.66 before 1998 to 2.45 after 1998. On the other hand, the HRs for the highest Psychoticism decreased from 7.85 before 1998 to 2.05 after 1998.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The impact of the 1997-1998 economic crisis upon suicide risk differed according to personality. Suicide risk increased among these with higher Neuroticism after the economic crisis, but this was not the case for other personality subscales.
authors.affiliation: Division of Epidemiology, Department of Public Health and Forensic Medicine,Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine,Sendai, Miyagi,Japan.
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Tanji
authors.affiliation: Division of Epidemiology, Department of Public Health and Forensic Medicine,Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine,Sendai, Miyagi,Japan.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kakizaki
authors.affiliation: Division of Epidemiology, Department of Public Health and Forensic Medicine,Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine,Sendai, Miyagi,Japan.
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Sugawara
authors.affiliation: Division of Epidemiology, Department of Public Health and Forensic Medicine,Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine,Sendai, Miyagi,Japan.
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Watanabe
authors.affiliation: Department of Preventive Medicine and Epidemiology,Tohoku Medical Megabank Organization, Tohoku University,Sendai, Miyagi,Japan.
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Nakaya
authors.affiliation: Division of Community Health,Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine,Sendai, Miyagi,Japan.
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Minami
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health,Yamagata University Graduate School of Medical Science,Yamagata,Japan.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Fukao
authors.affiliation: Division of Epidemiology, Department of Public Health and Forensic Medicine,Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine,Sendai, Miyagi,Japan.
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Tsuji
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D057172:Economic Recession / Q000266:history*; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior; D049673:History, 20th Century; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010551:Personality; D016016:Proportional Hazards Models; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D013405:Suicide / Q000639:trends*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
keywords: Cohort study; Japan; economic crisis; personality; suicide risk