Christian Psychology
76
Abortion and Suicide Rates in Christian European
Countries: Manifestations of Existential Vacuum
Kimberly Tangen
Fresno, CA
Donald I. Templer
Alliant International University
Suicide and abortion rates in 26 European Christian countries were correlated with each other and with three
happiness-related national variables. As expected, suicide rates and abortion rates correlated positively, and both cor-
related negatively with measures of happiness. It was maintained that both suicide and abortion are manifestations
of Viktor Frankl’s concept of “existential vacuum” in the context of Christianity. A serendipitous finding was that
national happiness correlated inversely with male but not with female suicide rate.
Keywords: abortion, suicide, Christianity, existential vacuum
Christian Psychology: Articles
The primary purpose of the present research was to cor-
relate abortion rates and suicide rates in 26 European
Christian countries. In both, there is the extinguishing
of human life. Neither is thought of as a joyous occa-
sion. There are laws that impose limits on and some-
times completely forbid both of these activities. Neither
is ordinarily carried out in a public place, and ordinarily
only one to a few persons is involved. Both can be
precipitated by stressful circumstances. More relevant
to the present study is that Christian religions have tra-
ditionally regarded both suicide and abortion as wrong.
Although Europe is arguably more secular and most
Europeans tend to attend church less regularly than in
the United States, it appears reasonable to assume that
they are aware to some degree of the teachings of their
religious roots. Indeed, one could argue that European
culture as a whole is underwritten in a complex and so-
phisticated way by the Judaeo-Christian tradition, and
its pervasive if sometimes tacit influence is inescapable.
The rich cultural heritage of the European countries
reflects their past history of church and state being more
intertwined than they are now. Even in the officially
atheistic Soviet Union, there was Russian pride in the
beautiful onion-domed Russian orthodox churches.
London’s Westminster Abbey is both a major center of
the Anglican religion and the major center of royal fam-
ily functions, which are now primarily ceremonial.
A common issue in both abortion and suicide is
that of depression. Research has demonstrated a high
rate of depression in women who have had an abor-
tion (Fergusson, Horwood, & Ridder, 2006; Pedersen,
2008). Although any possible cause-and-effect relation-
ship may be unclear (Aavitsland, 2009), this is a matter
with no immediate relevance to our research rationale.
National level of depression is of greater concern in the
present study. The relationship between depression
and suicide is almost common knowledge. Virtually all
clinically oriented books on suicide give depression as
a major causal factor (e.g., Hawton & van Heeringen,
2000; Hendin, 1995; Berman, Jobes, & Silverman,
2006; Lester, 1992; Stillion & McDowell, 1996).
Angelo (2007) discussed the depression that par-
ents feel when a premature infant dies or when a child
is lost by miscarriage. She contended, however, that the
emotional trauma is even worse with procured abortion.
She maintained that:
The death of a child by procured abortion is by
far the most traumatic loss to grieve. The death is
violent and untimely, the body is dismembered.
For these parents there are no remains, no child to
hold, no pictures to keep, no religious service, no
grave to visit. Mothers and fathers of aborted chil-
dren suffer their feelings of emptiness, grief, loss,
and guilt in solitude—often not acknowledging
them even to each other. Society offers them no
validation for their overwhelming feelings (p. 49).
Angelo’s vivid description of the negative emotions
is compelling. She does not, however, provide research
evidence. Such evidence regarding the relationship
between abortion and depression does exist, but often
the research design does not permit definitive infer-
ences regarding abortion causing depression, depression
causing abortion, or both being related to various other
psychological and/or social variables. Nevertheless, the
