Research on suicidal ideation indicates the significant role of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and early parental attachment but fails to investigate risk potential in student populations....Show moreResearch on suicidal ideation indicates the significant role of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and early parental attachment but fails to investigate risk potential in student populations. This study aimed to research how adverse childhood experiences in a population of university students who report mood and stress problems are related to suicidal ideation and whether the relationship between adverse childhood experiences and suicidal ideation is moderated by attachment style. To target students at risk for suicidal ideation, purposive sampling was employed. An independent samples t-test with consecutive multiple regression (n= 234) showed that adverse childhood experiences, measured with the ACE questionnaire, predicted the presence and severity of suicidal ideation, measured by the BSSI. Consecutive ANCOVA showed that disorganized attachment to the mother and father, measured with the PBI, were found to predict suicidal ideation. Secure attachment was negatively associated with suicidal ideation, whereas for avoidant and anxious attachment there was no association found. A logistic regression analysis showed no moderation effect of insecure attachment styles in the relation between adverse childhood experiences and suicidal ideation. Gender, academic pressure, and nationality were controlled. Findings may be limited due to methodological and performance flaws. The results highlight the importance of early identification of adverse childhood experiences and disorganized attachment for intervention and prevention of later suicidal ideation amongst students.Show less
Background: Bipolar disorder is a complex mood disorder, which is often underrecognized or diagnosed with a substantial delay. Therefore, it is important to determine factors that might predict the...Show moreBackground: Bipolar disorder is a complex mood disorder, which is often underrecognized or diagnosed with a substantial delay. Therefore, it is important to determine factors that might predict the symptomatology of bipolar disorder. Research suggests that the psychiatric family history of bipolar disorder patients may be a potential predictor. The current study investigates whether (the degree of) psychiatric family history of mood disorders has an effect on the symptom severity of bipolar disorder patients. Methods: The present cross-sectional study included 69 bipolar disorder patients. Patients with first- and second-degree family members, patients with only first-degree family members, and patients without family members with mood disorders were compared on symptom severity. Symptom severity was measured in terms of age of onset, number of previous episodes, suicidality and daily functioning. Results: The results indicated that (the degree of) psychiatric family history of mood disorders did not have an effect on symptom severity in terms of age of onset, number of previous episodes, suicidality and daily functioning. Conclusion: The outcomes of this study suggest that the relationship between the psychiatric family history of mood disorders and the symptom severity of bipolar disorder patients might be mediated or moderated by other factors, such as the degree of substance abuse or the type of mood disorder. Further research is necessary in order to create more insight in these potentially influential factors, which may facilitate the identification of bipolar disorder patients’ clinical profile.Show less
Background: Social determinants - such as demographic, social, economic, and environmental factors - in our day-to-day life influence our mental health on a large scale, and it has been known that...Show moreBackground: Social determinants - such as demographic, social, economic, and environmental factors - in our day-to-day life influence our mental health on a large scale, and it has been known that our interactions with our environment affect us greatly. Evidence that support this matter is growing, especially the effect social determinants have on suicidality. Although research and clinical practices try to include this aspect, they fail to properly address the importance of the said social determinants in regard to mental health and suicide. Pre-existing literature considers social connectedness as nothing more than an indirect factor regarding mental health and suicidality, and only a small amount of research has focused on this aspect. Additionally, evidence shows that international students are at risk of developing mental health problems and suicidal ideation. Objective: This study aims to investigate the relationship between perceived social connectedness and suicidal ideation in international students. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted through Qualtrics, recruiting Leiden University students (n = 139). In order to test suicidal ideation, the Suicidal Ideation Attributes Scale (SIDAS) was used. To test perceived social connectedness, Social Connectedness Scale - Revised (SCS-R) was used. Respondents were also asked about their nationality in order to determine whether or not they were domestic or international students. The final sample included in order to perform simple linear regression was n = 55. Results: The results showed that higher perceived social connectedness significantly predicts lower suicidal ideation in international students and explains 16.7% of the variance in the population. Conclusions: Overall, the effect of social connectedness on suicidal ideation is evident. Without doubt, there are social determinants that contribute to our mental health and with the investigation of its components, we would be able to improve both theories of suicide and clinical interventions.Show less
In the Netherlands, suicide is the leading cause of death in youths aged 10 – 20. As emphasised by the World Health Organisation, suicide is preventable. Early identification of those at risk of...Show moreIn the Netherlands, suicide is the leading cause of death in youths aged 10 – 20. As emphasised by the World Health Organisation, suicide is preventable. Early identification of those at risk of suicide is essential to provide suitable care. Previous research has shown that those who have experienced adverse life events are at a greater risk of suicide. The Icelandic Model for Primary Prevention of Substance Abuse (IPM) is a pioneering preventative model. The main goal of this model is to prevent substance abuse in Icelandic youths. One major aspect of the IPM is community-building. Community building has shown to be able to aid in not only preventing substance abuse, but suicidality as well, as social isolation is a risk factor for suicidality. This study attempted to assess how youth suicidality, negative life events, and community support interconnect, and whether this relationship is the same in the Netherlands and Iceland. Results showed a significant relationship between negative life events and suicidal thoughts in youths. In the Netherlands, a small moderating effect of community support on this relationship was found; this was not found in Iceland. The relationship between negative life events, suicidal thoughts and community support is different in the two countries. This means that from this research, there is not enough data to support the idea that the IPM could help significantly reduce youth suicidality in the Netherlands through increased community support. Further research could focus more broadly on suicidal behaviour, rather than suicidal thoughts, in relation to community support and negative life events.Show less
Victims of domestic violence have a threefold risk for developing depression and are likelier to commit suicide than non-victims. As the COVID-19 pandemic has increased the incidence of domestic...Show moreVictims of domestic violence have a threefold risk for developing depression and are likelier to commit suicide than non-victims. As the COVID-19 pandemic has increased the incidence of domestic violence and mental health problems, social media site Reddit was used to detect changes in depression and suicidality in victims word use (using more first-person singular pronouns, negative emotion words, death-related words and less positive emotion words). The present study aims to see whether the word use suggesting depression or suicidality has increased in the victims (r/domesticviolence) versus non-victims (r/changemyview) from pre-COVID19 to during COVID-19. 1669 and 2358 posts for the r/domesticviolence and r/changemyview respectively were analyzed using LIWC2015. The main effect of subreddit showed that victims used more first-person singular pronouns (Eta squared η²=.668) and negative emotion words (Eta squared η²=.167), both having a large effect. The control group used more positive emotion words and death-related words. Main effect of year showed an increase in the use of first-person singular pronouns in both victims and non-victims. There was no interaction effect between the year and the subreddits. These results indicate that COVID-19 didn’t contribute to the differences in depressive or suicidal word use between the two subreddits. However, COVID-19 had an effect in general for the increases in self-focus. Finally, overall the victims showed more word use related to depression or suicidality. Some limitations and future directions were considered in the end.Show less
