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Introduction: In Germany there is a vivid discussion about whether personality is influenced bythe fact that a person was born and brought up in the former German Democratic Republic(GDR) or the former Federal Republic of Germany (FRG). Of special interest is the question ofwhether antisocial personality traits are fostered or suppressed by a system that supportsindividuality. In the psychiatric department of the Berlin prison hospital the birthplace of allprisoners is documented, which offers the opportunity to compare prisoners who are born andraised in the former GDR to those from the former FRG.Methods: The psychiatric department of Berlin Prison Hospital offers inpatient treatment for allmentally disturbed prisoners who need hospital care. All patients born in the former GDR arecompared to an age-matched random sample of patients born in the Federal Republic ofGermany. The PCL-R score, criminal records and sociodemographic variables of those 2 groupswill be compared. A regression analysis will be performed to identify determinates of a highPCL-R score.Results: Characteristics of both groups will be described. A multivariate model to explainvariations in PCL-R scores will be presented. Further need for research will be discussed.Suicide amongst Prison Populations in Germany: An Overview of Risk Factors,Protective Factors, and High-Risk GroupsDanielle Goodwin, JVKB, Berlin, Germany (dgoodwin@live.fr)This report is based on a nationwide monitoring of suicide-tendencies amongst prisonpopulations throughout Germany, initiated by the German Society for Suicide Prevention. In thebeginning of 2005, a specific work-group focusing on suicide in custody was created. Theprincipal objective was to monitor suicidal behaviour of incarcerated individuals in order to gaina better understanding of the phenomenon as a whole, and thus, to improve suicide-preventionstrategies on a primary, secondary and tertiary level, and ultimately, to contribute to a decrease insuicide rates in prison. Socio-demographic, individual, criminological, custodial, and psychiatricdata of each suicide victim were systematically compiled and analysed using the SPSS system.External and internal suicide risk factors leading to specific risk-constellations were identified.Age, sex, health condition, nationality, marital and familial situation, financial situation, type ofcustody, type of crime, number of previous imprisonments, type of accommodation within thefacility, time at which suicide occurred, month in which suicide occurred, life-events, psychiatricrecord and previous suicidal behaviour were all taken into account. The data analysis reveals thatyoung male inmates, incarcerated primarily in remand custody, in a single-cell accommodationrepresent the highest risk-group, especially during night time. The month with the highest suiciderate was January, the month with the lowest, December. The days with the highest suicide rateswere Sundays and public holidays, as on these days, staff presence is lower. Protective factorswere also analysed, such as being in a relationship, having access to conversations with a doctor,a psychologist or a priest, and, as in correctional facilities in the federal state of Lower Saxony,access to a 24/7 crisis hotline. Data were collected by means of a specific questionnaire that was311