SINGAPORE: Older Singaporean men are disproportionately represented in suicide deaths among seniors, with experts warning that retirement, declining health, shrinking social networks, and an unwillingness to seek help can combine to leave many vulnerable later in life.

According to the latest figures released by Samaritans of Singapore (SOS), 120 people aged 60 and above died by suicide in 2024. Three-quarters of those cases involved men, with 90 male deaths compared with 30 female deaths.

Specialists say the imbalance reflects a complex mix of social, psychological and health-related factors that often emerge as men grow older.

Professor Paulin Straughan, director of the Centre for Research on Successful Ageing and a sociology professor at Singapore Management University, told CNA that traditional gender expectations have led many men to invest heavily in their careers, often at the expense of building lasting friendships and interests outside work.

She said paid employment gradually becomes many men’s “total self,” adding that they become “so overcompensated in their commitment to paid work that they leave insufficient time for building social networks”.

The impact of this often becomes apparent after retirement, when routines, identity, and daily purpose that once revolved around work suddenly disappear.

Prof Straughan said many people fail to prepare for this transition by nurturing hobbies or personal relationships during their working years.

“If you don’t spend time that is for nurturing your own hobbies, nurturing relationships, you’re going to face an empty four walls when you retire because you didn’t invest right in that preparation for retirement,” she said.

Retirement can also affect how older men view themselves within their families.

Associate Professor Dr Helen Ko, a gerontologist from the Singapore University of Social Sciences (SUSS), told CNA that many men were raised to believe their primary responsibility was to provide financially for their loved ones.

“There are a lot of men who tend to be expected to put food on the table, to be the breadwinner, to support the family,” she said.

As a result, leaving the workforce can undermine their sense of self-esteem and self-worth.

However, experts stressed that retirement does not have to mean losing purpose.

Ms Loh Yan Zhu, head of programme for counselling and coaching at the Tsao Foundation, said older men ca...