Intimate partner relationship breakdown and the risk of suicidal thoughts and behaviours in men

Key findings

Key implications

• Relationship breakdown is a key life event associated with elevated suicide risk and should be recognised as a critical time for prevention.
• Suicide risk following relationship breakdown occurs both in the short term and in later years, requiring both short-term and ongoing support.
• The increase in suicide risk associated with relationship breakdown is seen broadly across different groups of men, supporting a population-wide response.
• Further investigation needed into pathways of how relationship breakdown is linked to suicidal thoughts.
• Services supporting separating or separated men are well placed to identify individuals at risk and connect them with appropriate support.
• Rising levels of recent suicidal thoughts highlight increasing acute distress and the need for timely monitoring and response.

Overview

In Australia, suicide is the leading cause of death for men aged 15–44 (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare [AIHW], 2025) and the third highest cause of death for men aged 45–64 (AIHW, 2025). Men account for around three-quarters of all deaths by suicide in Australia (Suicide Prevention Australia, 2024). According to the National Study of Mental Health and Wellbeing (Australian Bureau of Statistics [ABS], 2023), in 2020–22, around 3% of Australian men reported suicidal thoughts, 1% reported suicidal plans and 0.3% reported suicide attempts in the past 12 months. Given this substantial and persistent burden of suicidal thoughts and behaviours among men, it is critical to understand how major life events contribute to suicide risk.

Relationship breakdown is a common life event, with around 38% of Australians reporting the break-up of an intimate relationship in their lifetime (Relationships Australia, 2024a). Moreover, around one-third of Australians have experienced the breakdown of an intimate relationship that still currently affects them (Relationships Australia, 2024b). Intimate partner relationship breakdown has also been identified as an important life event associated with elevated suicidal thoughts and behaviours (Wilson et al., 2025a; Wilson et al., 2025b).

There is some evidence to suggest that men may be at a higher risk of suicide than women following relationship breakdown (Scourfield & Evans, 2015). A possible explanation for this could be a lack of quality social support networks in men compared to women (Scourfield & Evans, 2015). Often, men rely on their intimate partner rather than friends for emotional support (McKenzie et al., 2018). Moreover, due to gendered expectations, men might also be less likely than women to communicate emotional distress and cope when experiencing life transitions such as relationship breakdown (Scourfield & Evans, 2015).

A recent study using Ten to Men data showed that men who experience relationship breakdown (e.g. divorce or separation) are at substantially higher risk of suicidal thoughts than those who do not. Wilson and colleagues (2025a) found that men who had had a relationship breakdown in the past year were almost twice as likely to report recent suicidal thoughts compared to those who had not experienced a recent break-up. Moreover, a meta-analysis by Wilson and colleagues (2025b) found that separated or divorced men were around 1.6 times more likely to report suicidal thoughts than married men. Given the high prevalence of relationship breakdown and concerning associations with poor mental health and, specifically, suicidal thoughts and behaviours, it is crucial for society to better support men experiencing relationship breakdown and its lasting impacts.

It is also well established that some population groups — including LGBTQA+ people (in particular, bisexual men), men in regional or remote areas, Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander men, current/previous Australian Defence Force (ADF) members and men with disabilities — experience higher rates of suicide and poorer mental health overall (AIHW, 2026; Department of Health [DoH], 2021). Elevated risk among these groups of men has been linked to factors such as loneliness and social isolation, as well as risky behaviours such as drug use and gambling (DoH, 2017; National Suicide Prevention Office, 2025). Structural and systemic disadvantage, discrimination and other negative experiences may further increase this risk, either directly or indirectly through the factors listed above (Bourke et al., 2012; Demant et al., 2024; LGBTIQ+ Health Australia, 2023; Priest et al., 2024).

Importantly, existing evidence suggests that the association between relationship breakdown and suicidal thoughts is broadly similar across different groups of men. Wilson and colleagues (2025a) found that the strength of the association between relationship breakdown and suicidal thoughts did not vary by age, levels of social support, harmful alcohol use or masculinity norms, indicating that relationship breakdown was linked to suicidal thoughts in a similar way across groups. However, men without a prior history of suicidal thoughts displayed a more than two-fold increase in the risk of suicidal thoughts following relationship breakdown, whereas the same association was not observed among men with a previous history of suicidal thoughts.

Despite this emerging body of evidence, important questions remain about the timing, severity and distribution of suicide risk following relationship breakdown, particularly beyond suicidal thoughts. Apart from Wilson and colleagues (2025a), there has been limited research examining which factors influence the association between relationship breakdown and suicidal thoughts and behaviours, which could inform the design and specific timing of interventions for suicide prevention. Also, Wilson and colleagues (2025a) did not consider how relationship breakdown was associated with suicidal thoughts, plans or attempts in the past 12 months, with their study only focused on thoughts in the past 2 weeks. These outcomes are important to consider, given their differing associations with suicidality (Daray et al., 2025; McHugh et al., 2019; Prabhakar et al., 2021). For instance, suicide attempts are much more strongly linked to later death by suicide than thoughts (McHugh et al., 2019; Prabhakar et al., 2021).

Additionally, there are little Australian data on the prevalence of suicidal thoughts and behaviours, and whether these estimates have (a) changed over time or (b) differ for certain priority groups or groups in the population who are known to experience a higher risk of suicidal thoughts and behaviours overall (e.g. men experiencing relationship breakdown) (National Suicide Prevention Office, 2025; Productivity Commission, 2025; Wilson et al., 2025a; Wilson et al., 2025b).

Current government decision making on funding for suicide prevention programs and efforts relies on timely, population-level evidence to guide where resources are best targeted, which groups are prioritised and when interventions are most likely to be effective. Up-to-date estimates of suicidal thoughts and behaviours – disaggregated by relationship breakdown status and population group – are essential for monitoring trends, assessing whether existing strategies are reaching those at risk and identifying emerging pressures on services.

Longitudinal evidence on the timing of risk following relationship breakdown is currently limited (Wilson et al., 2025b) and could inform when screening, referral and support are most appropriately delivered, rather than assuming risk is confined to the immediate aftermath. Evidence on whether risk differs across population groups or according to socio-economic, behavioural or social factors could further guide whether responses should be universal or tailored, and how programs supporting those separating or separated – such as family relationship and support services – might incorporate mental health and suicide prevention components.

Together, this evidence can support more targeted planning, service design and funding decisions across suicide prevention and family support systems.

How the current study fills these gaps

Using longitudinal data from Ten to Men, this study addresses key evidence gaps by providing detailed information on the prevalence, timing and distribution of suicidal thoughts and behaviours following relationship breakdown. The larger sample sizes in the most recent data collection period (Wave 5) enable more robust estimates for several priority population groups (listed under the National Men’s Health Strategy 2020–2030 (DoH, 2019)) – including Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander men, culturally and linguistically diverse men, young men and men living in remote or very remote areas. The longitudinal design of Ten to Men also supports examination of changes over time, with data on recent suicidal thoughts collected across 5 waves from 2013–14 to 2024–2025.

Importantly, the data enable consideration of suicidal plans and attempts, as well as thoughts. This distinction is critical given that each has a different association with subsequent suicidal risk (Daray et al., 2025; McHugh et al., 2019; Prabhakar et al., 2021). As noted previously, suicide attempts are much more strongly linked to death by suicide than thoughts (McHugh et al., 2019; Prabhakar et al., 2021), and suicidal behaviour is a stronger predictor of future attempts than thoughts (Daray et al., 2025). Including multiple measures of suicidality, therefore, provides a more complete picture of suicide risk following relationship breakdown and has direct implications for suicide prevention policy and practice.

Research objectives

Building on the evidence summarised above, the research questions were developed to address policy-relevant gaps relating to the prevalence, timing and distribution of suicide risk following the breakdown of a relationship with an intimate partner, and to assess whether this risk differs across population groups or according to key social, economic and behavioural factors.

The questions are:

1. How prevalent are suicidal thoughts and behaviours (for each of thoughts, plans and attempts) for men who have experienced relationship breakdown in the last 12 months, compared with men who have not experienced relationship breakdown in the last 12 months?
   1. How do these prevalences differ for priority population groups and groups who are known to experience higher rates of suicide?
   2. Have these prevalences changed over time for men who have and have not experienced relationship breakdown?
2. What is the association between relationship breakdown and later suicidal thoughts and behaviours among Australian men?
   1. Does this association differ according to personal characteristics (including age, Indigenous status, LGBTQA+ status,¹ speaking a language other than English at home, being born in a non-English speaking country, being a father, having disability and current or past ADF service²)?
   2. Does this association differ according to specific risk and protective factors (including demographic and socio-economic factors, risky behaviours and lack of social support)?

How prevalent are suicidal thoughts and behaviours for men who have and have not experienced a recent relationship breakdown?

Suicidal thoughts and behaviours in 2024–2025 were more common among men who had experienced recent relationship breakdown

In the 7.3% of men who had experienced relationship breakdown in the past 12 months (recent relationship breakdown), the prevalence of all types of suicidal thoughts and behaviours was much higher than in the men who had not (Figure 1).

Of those men who had experienced recent relationship breakdown, around 30.8% reported thoughts that they would be better off dead or of hurting themselves in some way in the 2 weeks prior to the survey (recent suicidal thoughts; PHQ-9 question (Kroenke et al., 2001)). This was more than double the proportion (14.4%) reported for those who had not experienced recent relationship breakdown (Figure 1).

Approximately 18.3% of men who had experienced recent relationship breakdown had had suicidal thoughts in the past 12 months, compared to 5.2% who had not experienced recent relationship breakdown. This is similar to the prevalences of past 12-month suicidal thoughts (9.5% in young men and 7.7% in adults) reported previously using Wave 2 Ten to Men data (Terhaag et al., 2020). Additionally, around 6.8% of men who had experienced recent relationship breakdown attempted suicide in the past year, compared to 0.9% of those who had not. This is also consistent with previous research using Wave 2 data, which reported that 2.3% of young men (15–17 years) and 1.0% of adult males reported suicide attempts in the past 12 months (Terhaag et al., 2020).

Our findings align with previous research (e.g. Milton et al., 2020; Wilson et al., 2025a) showing a clear link between relationship breakdown and suicidal thoughts. Our study adds to this evidence by showing how common thoughts, plans and attempts are, using data from a national sample of Australian men. Full results are available in Table S3 of the supplementary materials.

Figure 1: Prevalence rates of suicidal thoughts and behaviours in 2024–2025, overall, for men who had, and for men who had not experienced relationship breakdown in the past 12 months.

Notes: Sample sizes ranged from n = 710 to n = 889 for those who experienced relationship breakdown, n = 9,561 to n = 11,353 for those who did not experience relationship breakdown, and n = 10,384 to n = 12,574 for all men.
Source: Ten to Men data, population-weighted percentages and unweighted sample sizes, Wave 5

This pattern was also observed across priority population groups and groups known to experience higher suicide risk

This pattern held across most priority population groups and groups known to have higher suicide risk. The largest gaps (in terms of size) between men who had and had not experienced recent relationship breakdown were seen for men born in non-English speaking countries, fathers and men with current/past ADF service. More detail for each of these groups is given below. For context, the full set of priority population groups and higher-risk groups considered in this analysis is described in Table S4 of the supplementary materials.

Men born in non-English speaking countries: This group showed one of the largest gaps in recent suicidal thoughts by relationship breakdown status. Around 31.8% of men born in non-English speaking countries who had experienced recent relationship breakdown had recent suicidal thoughts, compared to 13.7% for those who had not. This estimate is higher than the overall prevalence of suicidal thoughts (10%) reported in a systematic review and meta-analysis of immigrants and refugees (Amiri, 2022). It should be noted, however, that Amiri (2022) reported overall prevalence across international studies from 2011–16, rather than prevalence during a specific high-risk life event such as a relationship breakdown.

Fathers: A large gap was also seen among fathers, particularly for suicidal plans. Around 14.4% of fathers who had experienced recent relationship breakdown made suicidal plans in the past 12 months, compared to 2.9% of fathers who had not experienced recent relationship breakdown.

Current or past ADF service: Our study also provides unique data on the prevalence of suicide attempts among current/past members of the ADF. One of the largest gaps by relationship breakdown status was seen among current/past members of the ADF. Around 12.8% of current/past ADF members who had experienced recent relationship breakdown attempted suicide in the past 12 months, compared to 0.8% who had not experienced recent relationship breakdown. This finding aligns with other research identifying a strong link between relationship breakdown and veteran suicide. Analysis conducted for the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran suicide showed that around 41% of serving, reserve and ex-serving males in the ADF who died by suicide between 2001 and 2020 had previously had relationship problems with their partner (AIHW, 2022).

Recent suicidal thoughts (past 2 weeks) increased over time, while longer-term measures (past 12 months) remained stable

At each survey wave, suicidal thoughts and behaviours were more common among men who had experienced a recent relationship breakdown. However, over time, recent suicidal thoughts (in the 2 weeks prior to the survey) have increased for men both with and without a recent relationship breakdown.

Among men who had experienced recent relationship breakdown, the proportion reporting recent suicidal thoughts rose from around 1 in 5 (20.5%) in 2013–14 to nearly 1 in 3 (30.8%) in 2024–2025. A similar increase was seen among men who had not experienced recent relationship breakdown, rising from 9.0% to 14.1% over the same period (Figure 2).

By contrast, suicidal thoughts, plans and attempts measured over the past 12 months remained relatively stable from 2015–2016 to 2024–2025 for men with and without recent relationship breakdown. This suggests that there has been an increase in short-term suicidal distress among men over time but not in all suicidal thoughts and behaviours (Figure 2). Full results are available in Table S5 of the supplementary materials.

Increases in suicidal thoughts over time have been reported in other Australian studies, although patterns differ by age group, outcome measure and length of follow-up. For example, data from the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children showed an increase in suicidal thoughts across adolescence (Swami et al., 2025), while national cross-sectional survey data collected over a longer period showed small increases in suicidal thoughts and plans over the past 12 months among Australian adults (Arya et al., 2025).

Figure 2: Prevalences of suicidal thoughts and behaviours in 2013–14, 2015–16, 2020–21, 2022 and 2024–2025, for all men, those who had experienced relationship breakdown, and those who had not experienced relationship breakdown in the past 12 months

Notes: Suicidal thoughts in the 2 weeks prior to the survey were measured in Waves 1–5. Suicidal thoughts, plans and attempts in the 12 months prior to the survey were measured in Waves 2–5. For all men: n = 5,256 to 14,613; for those who experienced relationship breakdown: n = 263 to 1,182; for those who did not experience relationship breakdown: n = 4,966 to 13,142. Top line with orange circles is for those who experienced relationship breakdown, middle line with blue circles is for all men, and bottom line with yellow circles is for those who did not experience relationship breakdown.
Source: Ten to Men data, population-weighted percentages and unweighted sample sizes, Waves 1–5

Is recent relationship breakdown associated with suicidal thoughts and behaviours, after accounting for other factors?

Relationship breakdown in 2024–2025 was associated with recent suicidal thoughts in the same year

We investigated whether relationship breakdown in 2024–2025 was associated with recent suicidal thoughts in the same year, after accounting for other factors.³ The association remained after adjusting for potential confounders. Men who had experienced a recent relationship breakdown had a 59% higher risk of reporting recent suicidal thoughts than those who had not. Full results are shown in Table S6.

These findings are reasonably consistent with earlier Ten to Men research. Wilson and colleagues (2025a) found that men who had experienced recent relationship breakdown had an 82% higher risk of recent suicidal thoughts compared to those who had not, with the breakdown and the outcome also measured at the same time points (breakdown in the past 12 months; thoughts in the past 2 weeks). However, this difference in findings could be explained by Wilson and colleagues (2025a) using data from earlier waves (Waves 1–4) with a different sample composition, analytic approach and sample size.

Relationship breakdown was linked to longer-term effects on suicide attempts

We next examined whether relationship breakdown was associated with suicidal thoughts, plans and attempts 1½ to 4½ years later (in later survey waves). This extends earlier Ten to Men research from Wilson et al. (2025a), which focused on thoughts only.

Men who had experienced a recent relationship breakdown in 2022 were around 3.7 times more likely to have attempted suicide in 2024–2025 than men who had not, after adjusting for a range of factors including suicide attempts in 2022 (Figure 3). For men who had experienced relationship breakdown earlier (in 2020–21), the risk of attempting suicide in 2024–2025 was around 2.8 times higher, after adjusting for a range of factors including suicide attempts in both 2020–21 and 2022.

The pathway by which relationship breakdown is linked to later suicide attempts is unclear (Klonsky et al., 2018; Millner et al., 2017). It is known that suicide attempt history is strongly associated with reattempts (Pemau et al., 2024). However, ideation-to-action theories suggest that the progression from suicide desire to attempts is distinct from developing suicidal thoughts (Klonsky et al., 2018). Further investigation of pathways would be useful in future research.

By contrast, a recent relationship breakdown in 2022 was not associated with suicidal thoughts or plans in 2024–2025 (Figure 3). Relationship breakdown in 2020–21 was also not associated with a higher risk of suicidal thoughts or plans in 2024–2025. These findings are broadly consistent with those of Wilson and colleagues (2025a), who found no association between relationship breakdown and later suicidal thoughts 1½ to 7 years after breakdown (they did not examine suicidal plans or attempts).

Taken together, these results suggest that relationship breakdown is more strongly linked to recent suicidal thoughts in the same year but may be linked to suicide attempts in later years. This differs from Batterham and colleagues (2014), who reported stronger short- to medium-term links between separation and suicidal thoughts and plans/attempts (up to 5 years post-separation). Differences may reflect the measures used, the covariates included and the analytic approach (Batterham and colleagues (2014) used one survey wave and compared groups by time since separation).

Figure 3: Estimates of the associations between relationship breakdown in (a) 2022 and (b) 2020–21 and later suicidal thoughts and behaviours in 2024–2025

Notes: Solid coloured circles indicate risk ratios and vertical lines correspond to 95% confidence intervals. Risk ratios above the dotted (reference) line indicate an increased risk, below indicate reduced risk and across represent no risk. Full results are available in Tables S7 and S8 of the supplementary materials. Covariates included are age, LGBTQA+ status, Indigenous status, employment status, annual household income, fatherhood status, region, socio-economic disadvantage, social support, harmful alcohol use, masculine self-reliance, masculine emotional control and the same measure of suicidality (thoughts, plans or attempts) from Wave 4 (and Wave 3 for 2020–21 models). Sample sizes for models ranged from n = 3,386 to n = 4,211.
Source: Ten to Men data, Waves 1, 3, 4 and 5, unweighted

The association between recent relationship breakdown and suicidal thoughts was stronger for men without disability

We examined whether the association between recent relationship breakdown and suicidal thoughts and plans⁴ differed according to specific personal characteristics (see Table S2 of the supplementary materials for further detail on characteristics) after accounting for factors such as age, income and prior suicidal thoughts. The only personal characteristic included that showed a difference was disability status (the full results for all personal characteristics are available in Table S6 of the supplementary materials).

The association between recent relationship breakdown in 2024–2025 and recent suicidal thoughts in 2024–2025 differed for men with and without disability. For men with disability, the risk of having recent suicidal thoughts was the same for men who had and had not experienced relationship breakdown. However, for men without disability, those who had experienced a recent relationship breakdown had an 83% higher risk of reporting recent suicidal thoughts compared with those who had not (Figure 4).

When considering later years, there was no difference in the risk of suicidal thoughts and behaviours in 2024–2025 following a recent relationship breakdown in 2022, according to disability status in 2022. Findings were unchanged in sensitivity analyses that excluded men who experienced a relationship breakdown in Wave 5 and were in a new relationship at that time.

The association was also stronger for employed men, those not in financial stress and those not living alone

We also examined the association between recent relationship breakdown and recent suicidal thoughts according to demographic and socio-economic factors, risky behaviours and a lack of social support (see Table S2 of the supplementary materials for further detail on factors) after accounting for variables such as age, income and prior suicidal thoughts. The only factors that showed a difference were employment status, financial stress and whether living alone (the full results for all factors are available in Table S6 in the supplementary materials). For unemployed men, men in financial stress and those who lived alone, the risk of having recent suicidal thoughts was the same for both those who had and those who had not experienced relationship breakdown (Figure 4). However:

• Among employed men, those who had experienced a recent relationship breakdown had an 84% higher risk of reporting recent suicidal thoughts compared to men who had not experienced recent relationship breakdown (Figure 4).
• Similarly, among men not in financial stress, those who had experienced a recent relationship breakdown had a 93% higher risk of reporting recent suicidal thoughts compared to men who had not (Figure 4).
• Finally, among men who were not living alone, men who had experienced a recent relationship breakdown had a 98% higher risk of reporting recent suicidal thoughts compared to those who had not (Figure 4).

Additionally, the risk of suicidal thoughts and plans in 2024–2025 following relationship breakdown in 2022 (i.e. later relationship breakdown) did not differ according to employment status, financial stress and whether living alone. Results were consistent in sensitivity analyses excluding men who had experienced relationship breakdown in Wave 5 and were in new relationships at that time.

Figure 4: Associations between relationship breakdown in 2024–2025 and suicidal thoughts in the 2 weeks prior to the survey in 2024–2025 for men according to disability status, employment status, experience of financial stress and whether they lived alone

Notes: Covariates are age, LGBTQA+ status, Indigenous status, employment status (for disability and financial stress models), annual household income, fatherhood status, region, socio-economic disadvantage, social support, harmful alcohol use, masculine self-reliance, masculine emotional control and suicidal thoughts in the 2 weeks prior to the survey from the previous wave (Wave 4). Disability model, n = 4,546; employment and financial stress models, n = 4,555; living alone model, n = 4,533.|
Source: Ten to Men data, Waves 1, 4 and 5, unweighted

Implications for policy and practice

Relationship breakdown should be recognised as a critical time for suicide prevention

Across the population, men who had experienced relationship breakdown had a much higher prevalence of suicidal thoughts and behaviours than men who had not experienced a recent breakdown. This pattern was observed both overall and among priority population groups and other groups known to have a higher risk of suicide, including men born in non-English speaking countries, fathers and current or past ADF members. Together, these findings reinforce relationship breakdown as a major life stressor associated with elevated suicide risk and highlight it as a critical time point for intervention. Suicide prevention policy should consider explicitly recognising relationship breakdown as a risk marker where proactive support may be beneficial.

Interventions should address both short-term and longer-term risk

The findings suggest that suicide risk following relationship breakdown may extend beyond the short term. Relationship breakdown was closely linked to having recent suicidal thoughts (within the same year of the relationship breakdown). Additionally, men who experienced a relationship breakdown were more likely to attempt suicide several years after the event. This indicates that responses limited to the immediate aftermath of relationship breakdown may miss important longer-term risk, particularly for more severe suicide-related outcomes. Interventions should therefore consider both short-term support to reduce acute suicidal distress and longer-term follow-up to address ongoing risk.

A population-wide approach is needed in interventions following relationship breakdown

After accounting for other factors, the increase in suicide risk associated with relationship breakdown was broadly similar across most population groups. There was little evidence that the association between relationship breakdown and suicidal thoughts was stronger for priority groups or groups generally known to have a higher risk of suicide. These findings suggest that interventions following relationship breakdown should generally adopt a population-wide approach, rather than being restricted only to priority groups.

Services supporting separating or separated men offer opportunities for early identification

There is a need to expand screening for and responses to suicidal thoughts and behaviours among men who attend relationship services. Because many men who experience relationship breakdown may not otherwise be engaged with mental health services, programs that provide support to separating or separated men may offer an opportunity to identify elevated suicide risk and facilitate timely support. Interventions should be gender-sensitive and cater for a variety of age groups reflecting the different developmental needs of men.

Rising levels of recent suicidal thoughts require particular attention

The increase over time in recent (past 2-week) suicidal thoughts for men in general, including those who have and have not experienced recent relationship breakdown, highlights the importance of better understanding and addressing acute suicidal distress. This contrasts with the relative stability in persistent suicidal ideation, that is longer-term (at any point in the preceding 12 months) indications of suicidal thoughts. The fluid vulnerability theory of suicide (Rudd, 2006) may help explain this pattern: chronic factors such as trauma history and mental health conditions establish an individual’s baseline vulnerability, while dynamic stressors – including relationship breakdown – can interact with this baseline risk to trigger a time-limited suicidal crisis. Monitoring short-term indicators of suicidality can help identify emerging pressures on individuals and inform timely prevention responses.

Next steps with Ten to Men data

Several related research questions could be investigated using current and future (e.g. Wave 6) Ten to Men data to strengthen the evidence base for suicide prevention policy and practice.

Based on the findings in this study:

• Future waves of Ten to Men (including Wave 6) could be used to examine longer-term outcomes following relationship breakdown, including group differences.
  - This would allow further assessment of whether the elevated risk of suicide attempts persists, diminishes or changes over time, and whether additional delayed effects emerge.
• It would be valuable to examine whether there are similar short- and longer-term patterns of suicide risk after other major life events, such as job loss, serious injury, becoming a parent for the first time and major family conflict.
  - This would help determine whether relationship breakdown represents a unique risk period or reflects broader risks associated with major life transitions.
• More research is required on the drivers for the increase in acute suicidal thoughts and distress observed in this study and other large nationwide population-based studies.
• Future analyses could examine whether suicide risk differs according to the number of relationship breakdowns experienced, the timing of the first relationship breakdown, cumulative exposure to relationship breakdown across the life course or factors such as increased loneliness.
  - This would help clarify how repeated or earlier experiences of relationship breakdown shape longer-term suicide risk trajectories.
• Future analyses could examine the extent to which reported use or experiences of domestic, family and sexual violence (DFSV), including experiences of childhood maltreatment or earlier adult reported use or experiences of intimate partner violence, help explain differences in suicide risk following relationship breakdown. This includes recognition of the way in which threats or enactment of suicidal thoughts, plans or attempts can be used as an attempt to control or punish the former partner, or as a way of attempting reconciliation.

- The largely population-wide pattern observed in this study suggests that other factors, such as DFSV reported use or experience, may contribute to variation in risk and could help identify men who are particularly vulnerable to suicidal thoughts following separation.

• Further work could explore how gambling behaviours and gambling severity are associated with suicidal thoughts and behaviours, particularly around periods of relationship breakdown.

- This would help clarify whether changes in risk-taking behaviours following major life transitions contribute to elevated suicide risk.

These questions would align with the objective ‘navigating life transitions’ mentioned in the National Suicide Prevention Strategy 2025–2035 (National Suicide Prevention Office, 2025).

Available services

In an emergency, call 000.

• Lifeline: lifeline.org.au ph. 13 11 14
• Kids Help Line (5–25 years): kidshelpline.com.au ph. 1800 55 1800
• MensLine Australia: mensline.org.au ph. 1300 789 978
• Suicide Call Back: suicidecallbackservice.org.au ph. 1300 659 467
• 13YARN ph. 13 92 76

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Further details

See supplementary materials for technical details of this research, including descriptions of the measures and detailed results.

¹No intersex (I) people were included in the Ten to Men sample. We have included ‘L’ in the acronym, given the wording used in the Ten to Men questionnaire, with ‘gay or lesbian’ being a response option. Additionally, 22 Wave 5 respondents identified as female. Given small sample sizes, we could not consider different members of LGBTQA+ communities separately for research question 2.

²Given small sample sizes, we could not separate ADF service into current and past service for research question 2.

³These factors were age, LGBTQA+ status, Indigenous status, employment status, income, whether a man was a father, region, socio-economic disadvantage, social support, harmful alcohol use, the self-reliance and emotional control masculinity domains, and previous suicidal thoughts.

⁴Given small sample sizes for suicide attempts, we only conducted these interaction analyses for suicidal thoughts and plans; not attempts.