Abstract
Introduction:Iran's western provinces have higher suicide rate compared to the other provinces of the country. Although suicide rates fluctuate over time, suitable statistical models can describe their underlying stochastic dynamics.Methods:This study was conducted to explore the fluctuations of the monthly suicide rates in the most populated western province of Iran using exponential smoothing state space model to compute the forecasts. For this reason, the monthly frequencies of completed suicides were converted to rates per 100,000 and a state-space approach was identified and fitted to the monthly suicide rates. Diagnostic checks were performed to determine the adequacy of the fitted model.Results:A significant seasonal variation was detected in completed suicide with a peak in August. Diagnostic checks and the time series graph of the observed monthly suicide rates against predicted values from the fitted model showed that in the study period (from March 2006 to September 2013), the observed and predicted values were in agreement. Thus, the model was used to obtain the short-term forecasts of the monthly suicide rates.Conclusions:In this study, we had no significant trend but seasonal variations in the suicide rates that were identified. However, additional data from other parts of the country with longer duration are needed to visualize the reliable trend of suicide and identify seasonality of suicide across the country.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.