Socio-Spatial Patterns of Suicide Mortality in the United States

2026-03-02

AI Summary

This study investigates the role of social networks in the spatial diffusion of suicide mortality across U.S. counties and examines the cross-jurisdictional spillover effects of gun control policies, particularly Extreme Risk Protection Orders (ERPOs). Leveraging county-level data from 2010 to 2022 and Facebook’s Social Connectedness Index, the analysis incorporates social network connectivity into spatial modeling of suicide rates for the first time, employing a two-way fixed-effects regression framework that controls for geographic proximity and state-year fixed effects. The findings reveal that a one-standard-deviation increase in the suicide rate of socially connected counties is associated with an increase of 2.78 suicides per 100,000 residents locally. Conversely, exposure to ERPO policies through social ties is linked to a reduction of 0.214 suicides per 100,000 residents, highlighting the critical role of social connections in the interregional transmission of both risk and protective factors.

Technology Category

• Application Domains: Social Networks
• Cognitive Modeling & Cognitive Systems: Social Cognition And Interaction
• Data Mining & Knowledge Management: Graph Mining, Social Network Analysis & Community

Application Category

• Social Networks and Social Media: Social media analysis through the lenses of networks
• Economics, Online Markets and Human Computation: Social networks and social learning
• User Modeling, Personalization and Recommendation: Social recommender systems and personalization for the social Web

Abstract

Suicides cause over 49000 deaths yearly in the United States, 55% involving firearms. Suicide mortality exhibits substantial geographical and sociodemographic heterogeneity; yet the role of social networks remains underexplored. To assess how suicide risk and firearm restriction policies propagate through social ties, we integrate county-level suicide mortality data (2010-2022) with the Facebook Social Connectedness Index (SCI). We also examine Extreme Risk Protection Orders (ERPO), state-level policies restricting firearm access for individuals at risk of self-harm. In two-way fixed effects regressions, a one-standard-deviation increase in the SCI-weighted average suicide mortality rate of connected counties was associated with +2.78 deaths per 100,000 in a focal county, while a one-standard-deviation increase in ERPO social exposure was associated with -0.214 deaths per 100,000. These associations persisted when adjusting for geographic proximity and including state-by-year fixed effects, and confirm the effect of social networks on diffusion of both harmful exposures and protective interventions.

Problem

• suicide mortality
• social networks
• firearm restriction policies
• socio-spatial patterns
• Extreme Risk Protection Orders

Innovation

• social networks
• suicide mortality
• firearm policy
• social connectedness
• spatial diffusion