Occupational risk factors for suicide: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Suicide is one of the major health problems that imposes a heavy burden on the health system. Currently, there is a notable absence of review and meta-analysis studies capable of exploring a broader spectrum of occupational factors associated with dimensions of suicide. This study was conducted to investigate occupational risk factors related to suicide dimensions by systematic review and meta-analysis.

Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses have been used. The databases searched in this study included: PubMed, Web of Science, and Scopus. The defined period included the beginning of the formation of these databases until August 2023, and this search was limited to studies published and available in English. The random effects method was used in a pool of different studies. In this research, the odds ratio with a 95% confidence interval (CI) was used in the report of findings.

The relationship between job demands and suicide dimensions was equal to the odds ratio of 1.29 with a CI between 1.11 and 1.50. This relationship was equal to the odds ratio1.15 with a CI between 1.08 and 1.23. Also, other risk factors for suicide were: conflict at work, job strain, job insecurity, workplace bullying, job stress, burnout, and work-family conflict.

This study showed how much the work environment and related risk factors can play a role in different aspects of suicide. Therefore, in the policies related to health at work, it is necessary to pay attention to the field of monitoring and screening of mental health in the work environment.