Study examines suicide awareness among ag educators across the South

By John Lovett
University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — As concerns about farmer mental health continue to grow, agricultural researchers are compiling more data on the complex nature of suicide awareness among those who may be able to offer help.

Statistics from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have shown that American workers in the farming, fishing and forestry industries have some of the highest suicide rates of any professional group. However, not much has been done to determine the levels of suicide warning awareness among school-based agricultural educators.  

“The school-based ag teachers are typically embedded into the social fabric of the communities in which they live and work, so we wanted to see what they knew,” said Donald Johnson, a University Professor in the department of agricultural education, communications and technology for the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station. “Their daily contact with agricultural producers and students gives them a unique perspective on farm stressors that can have negative effects on mental well-being.”

Prior research, Johnson said, had focused mainly on farmers and farm families. To gauge ag teachers’ farm stress and suicide warning awareness, Johnson joined a team of researchers from across the South and Puerto Rico in a study that surveyed 793 school-based agricultural educators in 13 Southern states, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Their work was published in the Journal of Southern Agricultural Education under the title “Suicide and School-based Agricultural Education in the Southern Region — A Multistate Exploratory Study.”

Seeing the signs

Despite the grim nature of the study, the results paint a largely encouraging picture, Johnson said, because they showed that school-based agricultural educators generally recognized most suicide warning signs and farm stressors. Many of the teachers surveyed also possess a strong awareness of issues affecting students and agricultural families, the study noted.

The researchers measured awareness of farm stressors using a list of common financial, workload, health and social challenges facing farmers. The study categorized teachers’ communities as rural, suburban, or urban, but did not specify how those community classifications were determined.

An unexpected finding was that school-based ag teachers described as “urban” were among the groups who were more likely to recognize farm stressors than teachers from “rural” communities.

The finding challenges assumptions that educators working closest to farming communities would be more attuned to signs of farm stressors. While there is no definitive explanation for the apparent discrepancy in logic, there are clues in previous research cited in the study. “Suicide in rural areas: An updated review of the literature,” published in 2014, identified several possible contributors to rural suicide risk, including “the sociocultural sanctioned pressure to perform as stoic, steadfast, and dependable providers.”

Although it goes beyond the study’s findings, Johnson said the implication is that people immersed in farming communities may become accustomed to stressors that outsiders recognize more readily.

Survey results also showed a significant relationship between awareness of farm stressors and awareness of suicide warning signs. Teachers who were more aware of one were more likely to recognize the other.

Also, teachers who were exposed more to suicide in personal settings and more aware of warning signs were also more aware of farm stressors, the study concluded.

Willingness to learn more

Also revealed in the research was that school-based ag teachers sought out professional development on suicide awareness independently when the sessions were not offered in their school systems. About 33 percent of ag teachers in the region surveyed reported that their schools did not offer mental health professional development, and 76.5 percent reported willingness to attend training.

While most of the teachers surveyed had attended suicide-related professional development, those who had not were generally willing to do so, especially females, less-experienced teachers and those with more personal exposure to suicide.

The study’s authors suggest that suicide-related professional development for agricultural educators should be “frequent, practical and tailored to teachers’ experience levels” with training focused on farm stress, suicide warning signs and intervention strategies, while using peer facilitators to help reduce stigma and encourage participation.

This work was supported by the Farm and Ranch Stress Assistance Network, project award no. 2023-70028-41286, from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture.

Arkansas farmer mental health challenges

Earlier this year, a related study by University of Arkansas researchers became one of the first statewide efforts to systematically assess the mental and physical health of Arkansas farmers.

The Farmer Adaptation, Resilience and Mental Health, or FARMS, report showed that about one-third of respondents reported some level of anxiety, and roughly one in six said they had considered ending their own life at some point.

The study was directed by Don Willis, an assistant professor of human development and family science, and Kevin Fitzpatrick, a University Professor and Jones Chair in Community, with co-investigators Cari Bogulski at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences and Natalie Speer, a graduate research assistant in the department of sociology and criminology.

Willis said that although survey respondents showed elevated levels of depressive symptoms, the study also found evidence of resilience, as strong social-support networks appeared to reduce negative mental-health outcomes. Family relationships, community connections and support from spouses were all identified as important protective factors.

Willis and Fitzpatrick discussed the report on KUAF’s Ozarks at Large, noting the survey of more than 600 farmers and ranchers in 72 of Arkansas’ 75 counties revealed concerns that might otherwise go undetected. 

Existing resources in Arkansas

Brittney Schrick, an associate professor and family life specialist for UADA, is leading mental health outreach efforts with a new approach that focuses on equipping and educating farming communities to face mental health challenges. She calls it “wrap-around community education.”

Farmers can sometimes be so hesitant to consider any form of mental health counseling, Schrick said, that she has often chosen to talk about mental health programs for farmers as “maintaining farm equipment.”

People can call or text 988, or chat at 988lifeline.org if they need crisis support or are concerned about someone else.

For those interested in scheduling a Mental Health First Aid course or training in other mental health-focused programs, contact Schrick at bschrick@uada.edu.

To learn more about ag and food research in Arkansas, visit aaes.uada.edu. Follow the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station on LinkedIn and sign up for our monthly newsletter, the Arkansas Agricultural Research Report. To learn more about the Division of Agriculture, visit uada.edu. To learn about extension programs in Arkansas, contact your local Cooperative Extension Service agent or visit uaex.uada.edu.

About the Division of Agriculture

The University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture’s mission is to strengthen agriculture, communities, and families by connecting trusted research to the adoption of best practices. Through the Agricultural Experiment Station and the Cooperative Extension Service, the Division of Agriculture conducts research and extension work within the nation’s historic land grant education system. 

The Division of Agriculture is one of 22 entities within the University of Arkansas System. It has offices in all 75 counties in Arkansas and faculty on three system campuses.

Pursuant to 7 CFR § 15.3, the University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture offers all its Extension and Research programs and services (including employment) without regard to race, color, sex, national origin, religion, age, disability, marital or veteran status, genetic information, sexual preference, pregnancy or any other legally protected status, and is an equal opportunity institution.