There is a long tradition in american sociology, going back to Dorothy Thomas's pioneering study in 1922, of studying the relation between suicide and other social problems, and the business cycle. Dorothy Thomas, "the Influence of the Buisness Cycle on Certain Social Conditions" Journal of the American Statistical Association, vol. 18, 1922, pp. 324-340. Rod Hay [EMAIL PROTECTED] The History of Economic Thought Archives http://socserv2.mcmaster.ca/~econ/ugcm/3ll3/index.html Batoche Books http://www.abebooks.com/home/BATOCHEBOOKS/ ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com