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Lethal Locations: An Application of Opportunity Theory to Motel Suicide, a Research Note

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Title: Lethal Locations: An Application of Opportunity Theory to Motel Suicide, a Research Note
Language: English
Authors: Wasserman, Ira M., Stack, Steven
Source: Death Studies. Sep 2008 32(8):757-767.
Availability: Routledge. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 325 Chestnut Street Suite 800, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Fax: 215-625-2940; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Peer Reviewed: Y
Physical Description: PDF
Page Count: 11
Publication Date: 2008
Document Type: Journal Articles
Reports - Research
Descriptors: Substance Abuse, Suicide, Predictor Variables, Housing, Probability, Stress Variables, Multivariate Analysis, Divorce, Place of Residence, Models
DOI: 10.1080/07481180802289689
ISSN: 0748-1187
Abstract: Location of suicide is a neglected area in suicidology, but is important because location is related to the presence of motivated rescuers who can prevent suicides. The present study analyzes the predictors of suicide in a location that is apt to be free of motivated rescuers: the motel room. Data from the files of a medical examiner in a Midwestern city included 1457 suicides, of which 27 took place in motel rooms. Predictor variables include demographic characteristics and psychosocial stressors associated with the suicides. An exploratory multivariate logistic regression model found four independent predictors of motel suicide. Conditions elevating the odds of motel room suicide were divorce (odds ratio = 6.0), out of county residence (OR = 14.4), hanging as a suicide method (OR = 3.0), and substance abuse (OR = 2.6). The model explained 24% of the variance in location of suicide. Opportunity theory is utilized to explain why location influences the probability of a suicide. (Contains 3 tables.)
Abstractor: As Provided
Number of References: 12
Entry Date: 2008
Accession Number: EJ808413
Database: ERIC
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  Value: <anid>AN0034084808;dea01sep.08;2019Mar30.06:29;v2.2.500</anid> <title id="AN0034084808-1">Lethal Locations: An Application of Opportunity Theory to Motel Suicide, a Research Note. </title> <p>Location of suicide is a neglected area in suicidology, but is important because location is related to the presence of motivated rescuers who can prevent suicides. The present study analyzes the predictors of suicide in a location that is apt to be free of motivated rescuers: the motel room. Data from the files of a medical examiner in a Midwestern city included 1457 suicides, of which 27 took place in motel rooms. Predictor variables include demographic characteristics and psychosocial stressors associated with the suicides. An exploratory multivariate logistic regression model found four independent predictors of motel suicide. Conditions elevating the odds of motel room suicide were divorce (odds ratio = 6.0), out of county residence (OR = 14.4), hanging as a suicide method (OR = 3.0), and substance abuse (OR = 2.6). The model explained 24% of the variance in location of suicide. Opportunity theory is utilized to explain why location influences the probability of a suicide.</p> <p>Few studies consider the place where suicide occurs, for example, at home, at a friend's residence, in a park, car, bridge, or at a motel or hotel (e.g., Hawton & Van Heeringen, [<reflink idref="bib6" id="ref1">6</reflink>]; Lester, [<reflink idref="bib8" id="ref2">8</reflink>]). Location is related to the odds of the presence of rescuers who can reduce the risk of suicide mortality through intervention. This article first discusses the theoretical relevance of the location of suicide from the perspective of an opportunity theory of crime and deviant behavior (Cohen & Felson, [<reflink idref="bib3" id="ref3">3</reflink>]; Siegel, [<reflink idref="bib10" id="ref4">10</reflink>]). It focuses on suicide in a highly lethal location—one with a low probability of the presence of a potential rescuer or guardian—the motel room. Other studies have considered motel rooms as locations for suicide (Hanzlick, Masterson, & Walker, [<reflink idref="bib4" id="ref5">4</reflink>]; Hanzlick & Ross, [<reflink idref="bib5" id="ref6">5</reflink>]; Kposowa & McElvain, [<reflink idref="bib7" id="ref7">7</reflink>]; Zarkowski & Avery, [<reflink idref="bib12" id="ref8">12</reflink>]), but none have discussed the theoretical relevance of this location in terms of a general theory of deviant behavior. Further, none have tested a multivariate model for the prediction of motels as a location for suicide.</p> <p>According to the opportunity theory of crime and deviant behavior, three phenomena need to come together in interpersonal space in order for the probability of deviant behavior to be maximized: (a) a motivated offender, (b) the presence of a suitable target, and (c) a person or object that is free of guardians or protective devices (Cohen & Felson, [<reflink idref="bib3" id="ref9">3</reflink>]; Siegel, [<reflink idref="bib10" id="ref10">10</reflink>]). The presence of motivated offenders is taken as given in the opportunity theory of deviance. Whether or not the motivated offender acts on his/her impulses to commit deviance depends on opportunities, which involves contact with suitable targets, and the lack of guardians for these targets. For example, the substantial rise in daytime home burglary during the decades following World War II was linked to affluence, in that the economic growth resulted in more objects of worth (suitable targets, including lightweight electronic devices) being available in the average home. In addition, a change in guardianship related to the substantial rise in female labor force participation, which left substantially more homes unguarded during the day, created opportunities for daytime burglary (Cohen & Felson, [<reflink idref="bib3" id="ref11">3</reflink>]).</p> <p>With respect to suicide, the motivated offender, the suicidal individual, may also be taken as a given in opportunity theory. The probability that the motivated individual attempts and/or completes suicide is dependent on the presence or absence of guardians, where guardians are other people. Guardians, or potential rescuers of the suicidal individual, can be divided into two categories: (a) motivated guardians and (b) all other guardians. <emph>Motivated guardians</emph> are principally the significant others of the suicidal individual, such as spouse or parents. They know and care about the individual. <emph>Other guardians</emph> are basically strangers or perhaps mere acquaintances of the suicidal individual. The significant others of the suicidal individual are assumed to be more likely to be motivated to take quick and decisive action to either stop a suicide attempt, or obtain the necessary emergency help to prevent the death of the suicidal person.</p> <p>In concrete terms, many suicide attempts involve cutting, and taking various types of poison. Death involving these methods often takes hours to occur, and if the suicide attempter is discovered within a certain critical time span, the individual's life can be saved. Hence, the presence of rescuers or guardians is critical to suicide prevention in many instances (e.g., Clarke & Lester, [<reflink idref="bib2" id="ref12">2</reflink>]; Zarkowski & Avery, [<reflink idref="bib12" id="ref13">12</reflink>]). However, in the case of the use of more lethal methods of suicide, such as a gunshot wound to the head, the presence or absence of a guardian is less crucial in preventing the suicide.</p> <p>The location of suicide is often related to the probability of the presence of motivated guardians. Suicides occurring in remote areas in national parks, for example, have a low probability that rescuers will be present. The nearest rescuer may be miles away on rugged trail systems, and if rescuers are in the vicinity of the suicidal person (e.g., other hikers, park rangers), they may not be highly motivated to prevent the suicide of a stranger. For example, the body of a missing park ranger, who committed suicide by poison on top of a remote mountain in Yellowstone National Park, was not found by search parties for more than a year (Whittlesey, [<reflink idref="bib11" id="ref14">11</reflink>]). In motels, the potential rescuers would be most likely to be strangers to the suicide victim, and thus not be motivated guardians. If the suicidal individual at a motel chooses a quiet method of suicide, such as drug overdose or hanging, their suicide may not be discovered until the maid comes to clean the room the following day, which would be too late to prevent the suicide.</p> <p>The present article conceptualizes suicide lethality in terms of the location of the suicide. Previous studies that used an opportunity theory of suicide have overwhelmingly emphasized the lethality of the suicide method (e.g., Clarke & Lester, [<reflink idref="bib2" id="ref15">2</reflink>]). These studies argued that suicide could be prevented by controlling access to very lethal methods of suicide through such specific measures as gun control, or detoxification of natural gas (e.g., Clarke and Lester, [<reflink idref="bib2" id="ref16">2</reflink>]). The lethality of any method interacts with the location of a suicide, because attempted suicides that occur in more isolated locations, such as motels/hotels, have a higher probability of success, given the absence of guardians who might intervene. The present article adds a new dimension to the opportunity theory of suicide by considering motel/hotel suicide as increasing the lethality of the behavior.</p> <p>There have been four previous studies reporting findings on motel/hotel location and suicide. However, none have keyed in on testing a multivariate model that estimates which categories of suicides are most apt to occur in motels. Two are descriptive and are based on specialized samples restricted to subsets of motel suicides: only out of county residents (Hanzlick & Ross, [<reflink idref="bib5" id="ref17">5</reflink>]), and only those motel suicides who used jumping as a method of suicide (Hanzlick et al., [<reflink idref="bib4" id="ref18">4</reflink>]). Zarkowski and Avery ([<reflink idref="bib12" id="ref19">12</reflink>]) focused on calculating a rate of hotel suicide, and not on the prediction of hotel suicide. That study did demonstrate the significance of the sheer rate of motel suicides, reporting a rate of suicide among local residents registering in local hotels of 223/100,000, significantly larger than the rate for the general population, 11.7/100,000, by over 20 times. Finally, Kposowa and McElvain ([<reflink idref="bib7" id="ref20">7</reflink>]) used motel location as an independent (not dependent) variable to predict suicide method.</p> <p>This article compares motel and non-motel suicides in relation to the demographic characteristics of the decedents (e.g., age, gender, race, residence), as well as the psychosocial stressors that impinge on the decedents (e.g., depression, substance abuse, marital problems). The analysis is largely exploratory and uses a multivariate model to investigate the predictors of motel suicide.</p> <hd id="AN0034084808-2">Method</hd> <p>The details on the location of suicide are generally only available from local sources (e.g., Kposowa & McElvain, [<reflink idref="bib7" id="ref21">7</reflink>]; Zarkowski & Avery, [<reflink idref="bib12" id="ref22">12</reflink>]). Data in the present study are from the files of the Wayne County (Michigan) Medical Examiner's Office. They refer to all suicides (<emph>N</emph> = 1,457) occurring in the two counties (Wayne and Monroe counties, with Monroe county being an adjacent county served by the Wayne County medical examiner) between January 1, 1997 and March 1, 2005.</p> <p>The medical examiner's files include an investigator's report, demographics cover page, toxicology report, and, in some cases, additional information such as an autopsy report and suicide note. The current investigation coded information on the demographic characteristics of the suicide victim from the demographics page. This page also contained the information on the location of the suicide. Data on the psychosocial stressors preceding the suicide are taken from the investigator's report. The investigator's report was completed by trained investigators of the Medical Examiner's Office based on information provided by the significant others of the suicide victim. These significant others included spouses, children, neighbors, friends, and relatives of the deceased.</p> <p>The central dependent variable was whether or not the suicide occurred in a motel. Suicides located in motels or hotels are compared to suicides located at home, at a workplace, at a friend's house, and so on.</p> <p>Data on demographic characteristics for the multivariate analysis were collected on four variables. Race was collapsed into two categories: African American and all others. County of residence was coded as Wayne or Monroe county and all others. Marital status was collapsed into two categories: divorced and all others.</p> <p>Suicide method was originally coded into four categories: firearms, hanging, drugs, and other (e.g., stabbing, jumping). This variable was collapsed into two categories for the multivariate analysis: hanging versus all others.</p> <p>Data on psychosocial stressors that were associated with the suicide are taken from the investigator's report. The principle psycho-social stressor for each suicide was coded according to the following taxonomy: (a) medical problems (e.g., cancer, diabetes), (b) mental problems (e.g., depression, schizophrenia), (c) economic problems (e.g., unemployment), (d) marital problems (e.g., marital fights, being in the process of divorce or separated), (e) relationship problems (e.g., disputes with friends or relatives), (f) criminal justice problems (e.g., conflict with the police), (g) death of a loved one, (h) substance abuse (e.g., drug addiction), (i) other causes (e.g., fear of being placed in a nursing home), and (j) no cause ascertained. For example, if the investigator learned that the decedent suffered from a life-threatening or crippling illness (e.g., cancer, multiple sclerosis), and was deeply concerned about his condition, it was assumed that medical problems contributed to the suicide. If the victim was upset about finances or a job, it was assumed that the suicide was related to economic problems.</p> <p>In 14.3% of the incidents (<emph>n</emph> = 208) no cause was ascertained for a number of reasons. This occurred because the death took place at a hospital, the decedent was from out of town, the body was discovered long after the suicide (e.g., drowning victims), or investigators were unable to locate significant others to question.</p> <p>There could be multiple causes for a suicide, such as a mentally ill individual with medical problems. In these cases both contributing factors are considered. For example, in 2000 in Dearborn Heights, Michigan a 64-year-old single White woman committed suicide because she was depressed over her failing health and her financial problems (i.e., medical and economic problems).</p> <p>A multivariate model with logistic regression estimates was used to help differentiate the motel suicides from the non-motel suicides (Menard, [<reflink idref="bib9" id="ref23">9</reflink>]).</p> <hd id="AN0034084808-3">Results</hd> <p>The bivariate findings on the demographic characteristics of the motel and non motel suicides are presented in Table 1. Average age and the gender of the deceased did not predict location of suicide. The distribution of suicide victims by race, county of residence, marital status, and suicide method significantly differed between motel and non motel suicides.</p> <p>TABLE 1 Demographic Characteristics of Motel and Non-Motel Room Suicides</p> <p> <ephtml> <table><thead valign="bottom"><tr><td>Characteristic</td><td>Motel (<italic>n</italic> = 27)</td><td>Non-motel (<italic>n</italic> = 1,430)</td></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>Average age (years)</td><td>40, <italic>SD</italic> = 10</td><td>43, <italic>SD</italic> = 19</td></tr><tr><td><italic>t</italic> = .99, <italic>p</italic> > .05</td><td /><td /></tr><tr><td>Gender</td><td /><td /></tr><tr><td>Men</td><td>82% (22)</td><td>83% (1180)</td></tr><tr><td>Women</td><td>18% (5)</td><td>17% (250)</td></tr><tr><td>χ<sup>2</sup> = .020, <italic>p</italic> > .05</td><td /><td /></tr><tr><td>Race</td><td /><td /></tr><tr><td>White</td><td>92% (25)</td><td>69% (980)</td></tr><tr><td>African American</td><td>4% (1)</td><td>28% (396)</td></tr><tr><td>Other (e.g., Asian)</td><td>4% (1)</td><td>3% (54)</td></tr><tr><td>χ<sup>2</sup> = 7.821, <italic>p</italic> < .05</td><td /><td /></tr><tr><td>County of residence</td><td /><td /></tr><tr><td>Wayne or Monroe County</td><td>74% (20)</td><td>97% (1391)</td></tr><tr><td>Other counties in state or in other states of nation</td><td>26% (7)</td><td>3% (39)</td></tr><tr><td>χ<sup>2</sup> = 46.605, <italic>p</italic> < .01</td><td /><td /></tr><tr><td>Marital status</td><td /><td /></tr><tr><td>Never married</td><td>22% (6)</td><td>45% (641)</td></tr><tr><td>Married</td><td>22% (6)</td><td>30% (423)</td></tr><tr><td>Divorced/separated</td><td>52% (13)</td><td>14% (200)</td></tr><tr><td>Widowed</td><td>0% (0)</td><td>7% (100)</td></tr><tr><td>Unknown</td><td>4% (1)</td><td>4% (57)</td></tr><tr><td>χ<sup>2</sup> = 31.705, <italic>p</italic> < .01</td><td /><td /></tr><tr><td>Method</td><td /><td /></tr><tr><td>Gunshot wound(s)</td><td>18% (5)</td><td>57% (810)</td></tr><tr><td>Hanging</td><td>52% (14)</td><td>26% (366)</td></tr><tr><td>Drugs</td><td>15% (4)</td><td>3% (47)</td></tr><tr><td>Other (poisoning, stab wounds)</td><td>15% (4)</td><td>14% (207)</td></tr><tr><td>χ<sup>2</sup> = 23.685, <italic>p</italic> < .01</td><td /><td /></tr></tbody></table> </ephtml> </p> <p>For motel suicides, 26% (<emph>n</emph> = 7) came from other counties to suicide, compared with only 3% (<emph>n</emph> = 39) of all other suicides. Nearly half (3/7) of the motel-based suicides who traveled into the county for their suicides were assisted suicides. Three White women came respectively from New Jersey, Texas, and Virginia in 1997 to commit assisted suicide with the help of Dr. Jack Kevorkian. These three women, who suffered from chronic illness (e.g., multiple sclerosis), took advantage of the opportunity to commit suicide without interference from the authorities.</p> <p>A difference between groups occurred in marital status. A majority of the motel suicide victims were divorced (52%), but only 14% of the suicide victims in non-motel locations were divorced. From the narratives in the investigator's reports, the routine activities and conditions associated with divorce helped to explain why the divorced person chose to live in a motel. For example, three divorced men residing in motels due to their financial hardships could not afford alternative housing. In addition, some were using the hotel as a "safe house" to hide from an abusive ex-spouse. For example, in 2000, a young White woman hung herself in her motel room. She no longer resided at her home, had lost custody of her children, and feared for her life due to threats by her ex-husband.</p> <p>Another difference occurred in method. Only 18% of motel suicides used guns, compared with 57% of all other suicides. Those who committed suicide at motels were more likely to use hanging as a method than non-motel suicides (52% vs. 26%). Shower stalls, closet poles, and sheets (for use as make-shift ropes) often provided the means for hanging-suicides in motels. For example, in 1999 a White man in Canton Township, Michigan hung himself at a motel using room sheets.</p> <p>Table 2 presents the data on psychosocial stress factors in motel and non-motel suicides. As can be seen from Table 2, only substance abuse significantly predicted motel suicides, with 30% of the suicide victims in motel suicides suffering from substance abuse, compared with 12% of the victims in non-motel suicides.</p> <p>TABLE 2 Presence of Psycho-Social Stressors as Correlates of Motel and Non-Motel Suicides</p> <p> <ephtml> <table><thead valign="bottom"><tr><td>Psycho-social stressors</td><td>Motel (<italic>n</italic> = 27)</td><td>Non-motel (<italic>n</italic> = 1,430)</td></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>Medical problems</td><td>22% (6)</td><td>18% (258)</td></tr><tr><td>χ<sup>2</sup> = .312, <italic>p</italic> > .05</td><td /><td /></tr><tr><td>Mental illness problems</td><td>15% (4)</td><td>30% (427)</td></tr><tr><td>χ<sup>2</sup> = 2.880, <italic>p</italic> > .05</td><td /><td /></tr><tr><td>Economic problems</td><td>4% (1)</td><td>9% (127)</td></tr><tr><td>χ<sup>2</sup> = .886, <italic>p</italic> > .05</td><td /><td /></tr><tr><td>Marital problems</td><td>19% (5)</td><td>9% (123)</td></tr><tr><td>χ<sup>2</sup> = 3.252,.05 < <italic>p</italic> < .10</td><td /><td /></tr><tr><td>Social relationship problems</td><td>11% (3)</td><td>13% (191)</td></tr><tr><td>χ<sup>2</sup> = .116, <italic>p</italic> > .05</td><td /><td /></tr><tr><td>Crime and justice problems</td><td>7% (2)</td><td>10% (139)</td></tr><tr><td>χ<sup>2</sup> = .162, <italic>p</italic> > .05</td><td /><td /></tr><tr><td>Death of a loved one</td><td>0% (0)</td><td>3% (48)</td></tr><tr><td>χ<sup>2</sup> = .937, <italic>p</italic> > .05</td><td /><td /></tr><tr><td>Substance abuse</td><td>30% (8)</td><td>2% (175)</td></tr><tr><td>χ<sup>2</sup> = 7.298, <italic>p</italic> < .01</td><td /><td /></tr></tbody></table> </ephtml> </p> <p>Table 3 provides the estimates of a multivariate logistic analysis, including measures of the five significant predictors of motel suicides (race, county of residence, marital status, suicide method, and substance abuse). Controlling for the other predictors, divorced persons were 5.98 times more apt to commit suicide at motels than persons of all other marital statuses. Persons residing outside of the county were 14.4 times more apt to commit suicide in motels than the native county population. Persons committing suicide in a motel were 3.01 times more apt to use hanging as a suicide method than persons committing suicide in other locations. Controlling for the other variables, race no longer predicted motel location for suicides. Substance abuse remained a predictor that increases the odds of a motel being selected as the location for a suicide (2.63). From the nagelkerke <emph>r</emph><sups>2</sups> statistic, the model explained 24% of the variance in location of suicide.</p> <p>TABLE 3 Demographic and Psycho-Social Stressors as Predictors of Location of Suicide. Logistic Multiple Regression Estimates, 1997–2005 (N = 1,457 suicides)</p> <p> <ephtml> <table><thead valign="bottom"><tr><td>Variable</td><td>Slope B</td><td>Odds ratio</td></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>Demographic predictors</td><td /><td /></tr><tr><td>Divorced/separated</td><td char="." charoff="50">1.789</td><td>5.981**</td></tr><tr><td>All other marital statuses</td><td char="." charoff="50">(1.00)</td><td /></tr><tr><td>Hanging</td><td char="." charoff="50">1.103</td><td>3.013**</td></tr><tr><td>All other methods</td><td char="." charoff="50">(1.00)</td><td /></tr><tr><td>African American</td><td char="." charoff="50">−1.764</td><td>.167</td></tr><tr><td>All other races</td><td char="." charoff="50">(1.00)</td><td /></tr><tr><td>Outside county</td><td char="." charoff="50">2.669</td><td>14.431**</td></tr><tr><td>All other residences</td><td char="." charoff="50">(1.00)</td><td /></tr><tr><td>Psycho-social stressors</td><td /><td /></tr><tr><td>Substance abuse</td><td char="." charoff="50">.966</td><td>2.627*</td></tr><tr><td>No substance abuse</td><td char="." charoff="50">(1.00)</td><td /></tr><tr><td>Constant</td><td char="." charoff="50">−5.215</td><td>.005**</td></tr><tr><td /></tr><tr><td /></tr></tbody></table> </ephtml> </p> <hd id="AN0034084808-4">Discussion</hd> <p>The present investigation frames motel suicide in terms of an opportunity theory of suicide. Motels represent a highly lethal location for suicide, in that motivated rescuers or guardians are very likely to be absent to prevent the suicide. A multiple logistic regression analysis of 1,457 individuals who committed suicide differentiated motel suicides from non-motel suicides. Three socio-demographic variables (marital status, county of residence, and suicide method) and one psycho-social stressor (substance abuse) differentiated the motel suicides from the non-motel suicides. Each of these four principle predictors of motel suicide can be further interpreted from the standpoint of opportunity theory as subsequently follows.</p> <p>Divorced persons were six times more apt to choose motels for their suicides than persons of other marital statuses. From narratives in the investigator's reports, many divorced persons had the motel as their principle residence. The financial strains associated with divorce result in nonnormative living arrangements for many divorced persons. Further, there was evidence in the narratives that some divorced persons used motels as their residence in order to elude abusive ex-spouses. Such aspects of the routine activities or lifestyles of divorced persons help explain their relatively high incidence of motel suicides. This finding linking divorce to motel suicides is consistent with a finding contained in a bivariate table from a previous study done in Seattle (Zarkowski & Avery, [<reflink idref="bib12" id="ref24">12</reflink>]). Unlike the Seattle study, this investigation controlled for other relevant factors that might influence suicide.</p> <p>Non-residents of the county, or persons coming in from other counties and states of the U.S., were significantly more apt than local residents to choose motels for the location of their suicides. Some of this association was attributed to three cases of women coming to Detroit for assisted suicide with Dr. Jack Kevorkian's help. If these individuals had attempted to commit suicide in public places (e.g., parks, public buildings), it is likely that the police or other rescuers would have prevented them. In an analysis not fully reported here, the model from Table 3 was replicated by dropping the three assisted suicides; the non-county resident variable was still significant, although the strength of its association with motel suicide weakened; the odds ratio decreasing from 14.4 to 7.1.</p> <p>Persons committing suicide in motels were substantially less apt to use guns than persons suiciding in other locations (18% vs. 57%). This finding has theoretical relevance for an opportunity theory of suicide. Persons committing suicide with guns need not to be highly concerned with eluding would be rescuers. A suicidal person armed with a gun acts quickly and decisively, with little chance of intervention making a difference. Hence, persons who own, or have access to, guns would have less motivation to seek out motels as the location for their suicides. For them, there is less of a need for a location free of would be rescuers. Of the non-gun methods, hanging was the preferred method of suicide for motel suicides, accounting for 52% of the motel suicides.</p> <p>The theoretical relevance for the findings on substance abuse is less clear. Given their privacy, and consequent protection against the authorities, motels may attract individuals who are heavy drug users. These individuals are likely depressed, and their use of drug and/or alcohol at the motel increases the probability of impulsive suicide. For example, in 2002 a young single White man, who was an alcohol abuser, went to a motel in Taylor, Michigan, and hung himself from a clothes rack. The existence of many empty beer and liquor bottles at the motel suggested that he went to the motel to consume alcohol, and his subsequent suicide may have been an impulsive reaction to his prior depression.</p> <p>There is some evidence that motel suicides have been defined as a problem requiring legal remedies. During the period of the Kevorkian assisted suicides at motels in the Wayne County area in 1997, a state legislator introduced a bill to make motel suicides illegal. The rationale behind the bill was based on two concerns: the emotional trauma the suicides caused the establishment housekeepers, who typically were the ones to discover the deceased suicide victims, and the cleanup expenses to the innkeeper (Bell, [<reflink idref="bib1" id="ref25">1</reflink>]). Opposing legislators ridiculed the measure, and it was never brought to a vote in the Michigan House of Representatives.</p> <hd id="AN0034084808-5">Acknowledgments</hd> <p>We thank Dr. Carl Schmidt of the Wayne County Medical Examiner's Office for expediting the availability of the data used in the present study.</p> <ref id="AN0034084808-6"> <title> References </title> <blist> <bibl id="bib1" idref="ref25" type="bt">1</bibl> <bibtext> Bell, D. (1997, September 23). Bill would restrict suicide sites. Lawmaker says she is protecting motel housekeepers. The Detroit Free Press, 2.</bibtext> </blist> <blist> <bibl id="bib2" idref="ref12" type="bt">2</bibl> <bibtext> Clarke, D. & Lester, D. (1989). Suicide. Closing the exits. New York: Springer-Verlag.</bibtext> </blist> <blist> <bibl id="bib3" idref="ref3" type="bt">3</bibl> <bibtext> Cohen, L. & Felson, M. (1979). Social change and crime rate trends: A routine activity approach. American Sociological Review, 44, 588–607.</bibtext> </blist> <blist> <bibl id="bib4" idref="ref5" type="bt">4</bibl> <bibtext> Hanzlick, R., Masterson, K., & Walker, B. (1990). Suicide by jumping from high-rise hotels: Fulton County, Georgia, 1967–1986. The American Journal of Forensic Medicine and Pathology, 11, 294–297.</bibtext> </blist> <blist> <bibl id="bib5" idref="ref6" type="bt">5</bibl> <bibtext> Hanzlick, R. & Ross, W. K. (1987). Suicide far from home: The concept of trans-jurisdictional suicide. Journal of Forensic Science, 12, 189–191.</bibtext> </blist> <blist> <bibl id="bib6" idref="ref1" type="bt">6</bibl> <bibtext> Hawton, K. & Van Heeringen, K. (2000). International handbook of suicide and attempted suicide. New York: Wiley.</bibtext> </blist> <blist> <bibl id="bib7" idref="ref7" type="bt">7</bibl> <bibtext> Kposowa, A. J. & McElvain, J. P. (2006). Gender, place, and method of suicide. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 41, 435–443.</bibtext> </blist> <blist> <bibl id="bib8" idref="ref2" type="bt">8</bibl> <bibtext> Lester, D. (2000). Why people kill themselves. Springfield, IL: Charles Thomas.</bibtext> </blist> <blist> <bibl id="bib9" idref="ref23" type="bt">9</bibl> <bibtext> Menard, S. (2002). Applied logistic regression analysis. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.</bibtext> </blist> <blist> <bibtext> Siegel, L. (2005). Criminology. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.</bibtext> </blist> <blist> <bibtext> Whittlesey, L. H. (1995). Death in Yellowstone. Lanham, MD: Roberts Rinehart.</bibtext> </blist> <blist> <bibtext> Zarkowski, P. & Avery, D. (2006). Hotel room suicide. Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, 36, 578–581.</bibtext> </blist> </ref> <ref id="AN0034084808-7"> <title> Footnotes </title> <blist> <bibtext> <emph>Notes</emph>. Variable reference categories are noted with (1.00). − 2 Log Likelihood = 209.775, <emph>p</emph> < .05. R<sups>2</sups> (nagelkerke) = .236.</bibtext> </blist> <blist> <bibtext> **<emph>p</emph> < .01; *<emph>p</emph> < .05.</bibtext> </blist> </ref> <aug> <p>By IraM. Wasserman and Steven Stack</p> <p>Reported by Author; Author</p> </aug> <nolink nlid="nl1" bibid="bib10" firstref="ref4"></nolink> <nolink nlid="nl2" bibid="bib12" firstref="ref8"></nolink> <nolink nlid="nl3" bibid="bib11" firstref="ref14"></nolink>
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  Data: Lethal Locations: An Application of Opportunity Theory to Motel Suicide, a Research Note
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="SO" term="%22Death+Studies%22"><i>Death Studies</i></searchLink>. Sep 2008 32(8):757-767.
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  Data: Routledge. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 325 Chestnut Street Suite 800, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Fax: 215-625-2940; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
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  Data: 11
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  Data: Journal Articles<br />Reports - Research
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Substance+Abuse%22">Substance Abuse</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Suicide%22">Suicide</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Predictor+Variables%22">Predictor Variables</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Housing%22">Housing</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Probability%22">Probability</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Stress+Variables%22">Stress Variables</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Multivariate+Analysis%22">Multivariate Analysis</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Divorce%22">Divorce</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Place+of+Residence%22">Place of Residence</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Models%22">Models</searchLink>
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  Data: 10.1080/07481180802289689
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  Data: 0748-1187
– Name: Abstract
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  Data: Location of suicide is a neglected area in suicidology, but is important because location is related to the presence of motivated rescuers who can prevent suicides. The present study analyzes the predictors of suicide in a location that is apt to be free of motivated rescuers: the motel room. Data from the files of a medical examiner in a Midwestern city included 1457 suicides, of which 27 took place in motel rooms. Predictor variables include demographic characteristics and psychosocial stressors associated with the suicides. An exploratory multivariate logistic regression model found four independent predictors of motel suicide. Conditions elevating the odds of motel room suicide were divorce (odds ratio = 6.0), out of county residence (OR = 14.4), hanging as a suicide method (OR = 3.0), and substance abuse (OR = 2.6). The model explained 24% of the variance in location of suicide. Opportunity theory is utilized to explain why location influences the probability of a suicide. (Contains 3 tables.)
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      – SubjectFull: Suicide
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      – SubjectFull: Predictor Variables
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      – SubjectFull: Housing
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      – TitleFull: Lethal Locations: An Application of Opportunity Theory to Motel Suicide, a Research Note
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