The Stanley Cup of Hockey and Suicide in Quebec, 1951-1992

Social integration theory would view the Stanley Cup of Hockey series as a ceremonial occasion capable of promoting a temporary drop in the incidence of suicide. This proposition is combined with a key postulate of routine activities theory - that people who share similar backgrounds, lifestyles, and interests are inclined to get together in social activities, including in this case watching playoff hockey. It is proposed that the social context surrounding the Stanley Cup constitutes in Quebec a period of increased informal interpersonal contact among the people, and that this should ultimately serve to discourage and/or prevent some potential suicidesfrom occurring. In situations where this type of social context breaks down during the course of the hockey series, suicide is expected to increase temporarily. The analysis reveals that the period comprising the Stanley Cup is by itself not a significant predictor of suicide, though its interactions with sex, age, and marital status are important. During the playoffs (as opposed to other times of theyear) young men are infact more likely to commit suicide, but if they are married, the chances of this happening are reduced significantly. Further analysis indicates that the increased tendencyforyoung men to commit suicide during the hockey series is associated with the situation of when Montreal are ousted early from the competition. The causal mechanismsfor this effect are explicated in terms of a premature breakdown of the informal social context associated with the playoffs experience. These results and otherfeatures of this study are discussed in relation to previous research regarding sports and mortality.