The Cabinet Office said Wednesday in announcing the results of a government survey that 1 out of 4 Japanese adults has contemplated suicide, with young people more prone to such thoughts than others.

The outcome "probably reflects the difficulty of finding jobs amid the economic slump, the increase in nonregular employees and weak personal relations," the office said.

The January survey received 2,017 valid responses from Japanese aged 20 and older. Of the pollees, 23.4 percent had thought of committing suicide, up 4.3 percentage points from the previous and first such survey, which was conducted in 2008.