Understanding suicide risk factors
The risk factors for suicide and suicidality among serving and ex-serving ADF personnel exist across many domains and how they relate to each other can be complex.
Preventing suicide requires a comprehensive, coordinated approach to addressing the many factors that contribute to people dying by suicide and the experience of suicidality, as outlined by the National Suicide Prevention Office. While suicidal behaviour can be experienced by anyone, some populations and groups can be disproportionately affected, meaning tailored interventions and targeted approaches to preventing suicide and suicidality are required. Prior to the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide being called, it was known that current and ex-serving ADF members experienced high rates of suicide and suicidality.
What are risk factors?
Risk factors are factors that may contribute to suicidal distress and are potentially modifiable. Risk factors are often not definitive because they are contextual and interconnected, and operate at individual, interpersonal and systems levels.
These factors can be biological (such as disease or injury), psychological (such as mental ill health or substance abuse disorders) and psychosocial (such as family and education history). They may also include stressful life events or situation-based stressors.
Risk factors for Defence members and veterans
The unique nature of ADF service promotes protective factors that can lead to improved health outcomes. ADF service, however, can also expose members to risk factors that may lead to poor health during and after their military service.
The life stressors and events that can be risk factors for suicide in the general population can also be experienced by serving and ex-serving ADF members. They can co-occur with military-related stressors.
Serving and ex-serving members are, therefore, more likely to accumulate risk factors and are at greater risk of suicide and suicidality.
More information on statistics for suicide and suicidality for current and ex-serving ADF members is on our Data page.
The Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide identified a range of military-related factors and stressors that have the potential to be experienced as risk factors for suicide and suicidality.
Training |
Trained Force |
Deployment |
Post-service |
|
Removal from family environment Strict disciplinary standards of the military Requirement to reach and maintain high standards of physical fitness Uncertainties regarding their decision to join the ADF |
Separation from family and family disruption Having to adjust to a new geographical location Shifts in role and responsibilities Changes to support networks and leadership structures Difficulties of settling a family in a new area Financial difficulties, arising from family separation and frequent removals, often exacerbated by the inability of spouses to pursue a settled career |
Operational requirements, entailing deployment to potentially hostile areas or to regions with only a limited support infrastructure |
Loss of belonging and identity Feelings of institutional betrayal Financial stress Finding employment Finding accommodation |
Transition points and increased risks
Key transition points and periods of vulnerability across service life present unique stressors and opportunities for intervention. These key points can include:
- recruit or commissioning course and initial employment training
- posting to a new unit, ship or base
- deployment
- exposure to traumatic events
- experiencing injury or illness
- interaction with the military justice system, and
- transition from military to civilian life.
Key military-related factors identified as potentially detrimental to ADF members’ mental health across their life course also include:
- separation from family and family disruption
- administrative termination
- barriers to and stigma in relation to seeking care
- poor support or victimisation from peers and supervisor
- burnout
- unacceptable behaviour
- downgrade in military employment classification
- administrative violence
- moral injury
- military institutional betrayal
- prohibition of reporting and code of silence
- lack of transition support and continuity of care
- inadequate record keeping making post-service DVA claims difficult to prove, and
- inadequacies in healthcare provision.
Understanding risk factors relating to suicide and suicidality can highlight areas of a person’s life that may need additional attention. The presence of one of more of these risk factors does not necessarily mean they will experience suicidality.
Understanding risk factors is critical to inform strategies for reducing suicide and improving wellbeing. It can help in planning more effective, evidence-based preventions and interventions.
