Patterns of suicide associated with marital breakdown are different in men and women, suggesting that marriage may act as more of a protective factor for men than it does for women. Widowed and divorced men have a rate of suicide of about twice the rate for women in the same situation. There is consistent evidence of high suicide rates among certain sub-groups of young Asian women particularly those of Hindu or Sikh origin. A report commissioned by the US government concluded that lesbian and gay youth were 2 or 3 times more likely to attempt suicide. In 1994 the number of recorded suicides in British prisons rose to an unprecedented 61.
Homelessness greatly increases the likelihood of a suicide attempt.
Men and women typically use quite different methods of killing themselves. For men, the most common methods are car exhaust gas and hanging. It is suggested that attempted suicide is the strongest predictor of subsequent death through suicide among people with psychiatric disorders. Self-injury can be quite different in intent from attempted suicide because the injuries are generally inflicted in order to enable the person to carry on living or to cope with difficult feelings rather than to end their life. The most common form of self-injury is cutting but it can also include bruising, scraping and burning.