One hundred years of suicide in New Zealand.

Suicide rates were obtained for New Zealand from 1889 to 1988. The overall rate for women has been stable since the 1930s, and the male rate showed marked peaks in the early 1930s and in the 1980s. Analysis of rates by age group revealed that the 1930 male peak was due to increases among the middle-aged and elderly men, and the current peak is due to increases among young men. Possible explanations for fluctuations in suicide rates over the last century are discussed.