Towards a Student Suicide Safety Net: The Relation between Suicidal Ideation, Depressive Symptoms and Social Support in Students

In recent years suicidal behavior has become more prevalent among students, especially in cases of depression. The Interpersonal Theory of Suicide has suggested that feelings of thwarted belongingness and burdensomeness can precede suicidal ideation. Both concepts are rooted deeply in the social world and research suggests that social support may alleviate these feelings offering a promising avenue of research for suicide prevention. The current study aims to explore the relationship between social support and suicidal ideation in the context of depressive symptoms among students by using a network analysis. A network of 11 nodes was computed using a Gaussian Graphical model. Nodes represented depressive symptoms (suicide ideation, low energy, sleep problems, weight/appetite changes, psychomotor changes, concentration problems, guilt, sadness and loneliness), perceived social support and objective social support. Participants (N = 453) were recruited as part of the WARN-D program...Show moreIn recent years suicidal behavior has become more prevalent among students, especially in cases of depression. The Interpersonal Theory of Suicide has suggested that feelings of thwarted belongingness and burdensomeness can precede suicidal ideation. Both concepts are rooted deeply in the social world and research suggests that social support may alleviate these feelings offering a promising avenue of research for suicide prevention. The current study aims to explore the relationship between social support and suicidal ideation in the context of depressive symptoms among students by using a network analysis. A network of 11 nodes was computed using a Gaussian Graphical model. Nodes represented depressive symptoms (suicide ideation, low energy, sleep problems, weight/appetite changes, psychomotor changes, concentration problems, guilt, sadness and loneliness), perceived social support and objective social support. Participants (N = 453) were recruited as part of the WARN-D program and suicide ideation, level of social support and depressive symptoms were assessed using various questionnaires. Contrary to our expectation, no relationship was found between suicide ideation and social support or loneliness. Loneliness emerged as the most central node in the network. Guilt was found to have the most connections with other variables in the network. Further research is needed to clarify the role social support can play in preventing suicide ideation and in depression in general.Show less

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Towards a Student Suicide Safety Net: The Relation between Suicidal Ideation, Depressive Symptoms and Social Support in Students