Abstract

Research interest in suicide is increasing worldwide. However, most studies have focused on suicide risk factors, while little research has been done about warning signs of suicide. Therefore, the current study analyzed police investigation records processed by the Korea Suicide Prevention Center from 2013 to 2017 to explore the relationship between suicide risk factors and warning signs in Korea. A total of 6,459 data were analyzed and a network analysis was conducted to explore the relationship between suicide risk factors and warning signs. Results revealed four clusters: language, behavior, psychological, and physical. In terms of network centrality, psychiatric symptoms had the highest degree centrality and closeness centrality with changes before death having the highest betweenness centrality. Although general patterns were similar across the three centralities, some variables showed different patterns depending on the centrality. The current study was meaningful in that it analyzed warning signs not extensively studied previously and used a relatively new approach to explore the relationship between suicide risk factors and warning signs.