Abstract
The relationships between suicide rates at different ages within male and female birth cohorts in England and Wales are examined. There is a sex difference in the pattern of mean correlations of within-cohort rates for various time intervals, with females showing a significant negative correlation between rates separated by 10–15 years. The full correlation matrix of age-specific rates indicates that this negative mean interval correlation is due to negative correlations between rates at age 35–44 years and rates at other ages. This suggests that the acceleration-deceleration model of suicide may be applicable to female rates, with a reduction in suicide associated with pregnancy and motherhood and a rebound increase in rates thereafter.