The Effect of Immigration on Suicide: A Cross-National Analysis

Research on the effects of immigration on the rate of suicide has been largely restricted to a few unsystematic case studies of individual cities and nations. This paper performs a systematic cross-national investigation of the impact of the lowered integration and culture shock associated with international migration on the suicide rate in 34 nations. A multiple regression analysis indicates that the rate of immigration affects the incidence of suicide independent of our two control variables, the proportion of the population over 65, and female participation in the labor force, an indicator drawn from the status integration approach to suicide. A 1% increase in immigration is associated with a .13% increase in the rate of suicide. However, analysis of the relative importance of variables in explaining the variance in suicide indicates that our control variables are somewhat more important than the rate of long-term immigration. Research on the effects of immigration on the rate of suicide has been largely restricted to a few unsystematic case studies of individual cities and nations. This paper performs a systematic cross-national investigation of the impact of the lowered integration and culture shock associated with international migration on the suicide rate in 34 nations. A multiple regression analysis indicates that the rate of immigration affects the incidence of suicide independent of our two control variables, the proportion of the population over 65, and female participation in the labor force, an indicator drawn from the status integration approach to suicide. A 1% increase in immigration is associated with a .13% increase in the rate of suicide. However, analysis of the relative importance of variables in explaining the variance in suicide indicates that our control variables are somewhat more important than the rate of long-term immigration.     

Measuring the Creative Process: A Psychometric Examination of Creative Ideation and Grit

Within the investment theory of creativity (Sternberg & Lubart, 1996), creativity is defined as a 2-part process of buying low by investing in unusual ideas and then selling high by convincing others of the value or usefulness of these new ideas. This process requires both creative ideation and perseverance. The purpose of this research was to examine the psychometric properties of instrumentation proposed to assess the 2 underlying constructs in this definition: the creative ideational behavior required to buy low and the persevering behavior required to sell high. In particular, psychometric properties of a creativity ideation measure, the Runco Ideational Behavior Scale (RIBS Scale: Runco, Plucker, & Lim, 2001) and a perseverance measure, the Grit Scale (Duckworth, Peterson, Matthews, & Kelly, 2007) were examined in this study. Two samples of undergraduate students (N = 187; N = 817) completed a survey including these two scales and demographic information. Factor analyses were performed on the RIBS and Grit Scales. The RIBS Scale was found to have a 2-factor structure and 2 proposed new subscales. The Grit Scale’s previously reported 2-factor structure was confirmed.     

Child and Family Emotional Functioning: A Cross-National Examination of Families from China and the United States

Scant research has examined links between particular emotion socialization processes and child emotion functioning cross-nationally. In this study, we assessed a sample of 55 families from the United States (U.S.; 28 boys and 27 girls) and 49 families from China (27 boys and 22 girls) on family emotional expressiveness and children’s emotional experiences and regulation. Results indicated that children and families from the U.S. reported greater emotional expressiveness than their Chinese counterparts. Children from the U.S. also reported greater undercontrolled emotion than Chinese youth. Family expression of positive emotion was related to effortful emotion regulation in U.S. youth only, whereas family expression of negative emotion was associated with undercontrolled emotion for both U.S. and Chinese children. Our findings advance context-specific models of emotional development by illustrating similarities and differences in emotional functioning among U.S. and Chinese families. From a clinical perspective, the findings suggest that practitioners should consider the cultural variations of emotion communication within families when conducting both assessment and therapy.     

Suicide Ideation and Creative Problem Solving

This investigation utilized the recent technology for the assessment of creativity to examine the association between problem solving and suicide ideation. Three kinds of problem-finding and -solving tasks were administered to 81 (nonclinical) college students. One of these tasks assesses “problem generation” and was expected to be particularly informative, given that individuals considering suicide may perceive many problems but find few solutions. Results supported this expectation: Problem generation scores were significantly correlated with suicide ideation, even after stress was statistically controlled. A secondary analysis suggested that the originality and flexibility of solutions may be influenced by the particular problem an individual faces.     

A Psychometric and Cross-National Examination of a Belief in a Just World Scale

The study examined the psychometric properties of Dalbert, Montada, and Schmitt's (1987) English version of their 6-item belief in a just world scale using a sample of 253 Canadian management undergraduates. This study found strong support for the homogeneity of the scale, the independence of the scale from the influence of social desirability, and the concurrent validity of the scale as seen in significant correlations with Rubin and Peplau's (1975) 20-item just world scale. Cross-national comparisons show that this Canadian sample scored significantly higher than did the European and Hawaiian samples reported by Dalbert and her colleagues.     

Suicide Risk across Latent Class Subgroups: A Test of the Generalizability of the Interpersonal Psychological Theory of Suicide

It remains unclear whether the Interpersonal Psychological Theory of Suicide (IPTS; Joiner, 2005 ) is generalizable to the population or holds more explanatory power for certain subgroups compared to others. The aim of this study was to (1) identify subgroups of individuals who endorsed suicide ideation in the past month based on a range of mental health and demographic variables, (2) compare levels of the IPTS constructs within these subgroups, and (3) test the IPTS predictions for suicide ideation and suicide attempt for each group. Latent class, negative binomial, linear, and logistic regression analyses were conducted on population‐based data obtained from 1,321 adults recruited from Facebook. Among participants reporting suicide ideation, four distinct patterns of risk factors emerged based on age and severity of mental health symptoms. Groups with highly elevated mental health symptoms reported the highest levels of thwarted belongingness and perceived burdensomeness. Tests of the IPTS interactions provided partial support for the theory, primarily in young adults with elevated mental health symptoms. Lack of support found for the IPTS predictions across the subgroups and full sample in this study raise some questions around the broad applicability of the theory.     

Creative Mindsets and Their Affective and Social Consequences: A Latent Class Approach

In two studies, we tested the conceptualization of creative mindsets as latent classes, and examined several social and affective consequences of class membership. Business students completed a battery of questionnaires assessing creative personal identity, creative mindsets, social comparisons, pride, gratitude, anger, and sadness. Results from study 1 showed the presence of four latent classes: those holding low levels of both mindsets, those holding high levels of both mindsets, those holding high levels of a growth and low levels of a fixed mindset, and those holding medium levels of a growth and relative high levels of a fixed mindset. The latent class with low levels of both mindsets, growth and fixed, showed the lowest levels of creative personal identity. The latent class characterized by holding high levels of a fixed and growth mindset reported the highest tendency to use social comparison as a way of judging the quality of business ideas. Results from study 2 showed a similar four‐class solution. The low fixed and low growth creative mindset class showed the lowest levels of creative personal identity, higher levels of sadness and lower levels of pride and gratitude than some of the other classes.     

Supporting Counselors After a Client Suicide: Creative Supervision Techniques

Many professional counselors will experience the loss of a client to suicide. The effects of this loss are explored in this article. The supervisor’s role in supporting a supervisee after a client’s suicide is presented. Additionally, creative interventions that can be used by supervisors to support supervisees after the loss of a client are provided. These creative techniques are theoretically grounded within the cognitive behavioral, solution-focused, and narrative paradigms.     

Morale and its Components: A Cross-National Comparison1

Two U.S. Army armored cavalry squadrons (N= 660), one in Europe (USAREUR), stationed on the East German border, and one in the continental U.S. (CONUS), were administered an English version of a questionnaire widely used in the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) to assess morale, cohesion and soldier perception of unit readiness for combat. Analysis of inter-item correlations, including factor analyses, revealed a generally similar structure of morale in the U.S. units and a comparable IDF sample stationed along the Lebanon border (N= 1270). All three data sets were organized around a group factor, a leadership factor, and two individual factors, one personal and one professional. National differences were apparent with regard to the relationship between morale and perceived contribution to national security, confidence in weapons, and confidence in senior commanders. In several other respects the USAREUR unit resembled the IDF sample far more than it resembled its sister unit in the U.S. As a whole the data are consistent with the view that morale has relatively similar determinants across armies, but that both national characteristics and situational characteristics (e.g., proximity to a potential foe and/ or battlefield) play a role in the relative importance of these determinants.     

Adolescent Bereavement Following Suicide: An Examination of Relevant Literature

For adolescents, a loved one's death by suicide is a tragic event linked with increased morbidity, death fears, and psychopathology. For these reasons, the links between bereavement after suicide and the subsequent development of adolescents (including increased suicide risks) require further study. In the existing literature, inconsistent definitions of adolescence are used, samples of adolescents are drawn from those in psychotherapy, and other methodological problems exist.     

Clarifying the Relationship of Dissociative Experiences to Suicide Ideation and Attempts: A Multimethod Examination in Two Samples

Fears of pain, injury, and death may represent key barriers to acting on suicidal thoughts. Dissociation, which involves a disconnection from one’s body, may reduce fears and sensations of pain associated with harming the body, in turn facilitating suicide attempts. This study examined whether dissociation differentiated individuals with a history of suicide attempts from those with a history of suicide ideation, and investigated whether other relevant constructs explain this relationship. Sample 1 included 754 undergraduates (M_age = 21, 79% female) who completed a battery of self-report measures. Sample 2 included 247 undergraduates (M_age = 19, 74% female) who completed a self-report measure of dissociation, a clinical interview regarding suicide history, and four counterbalanced behavioral pain tolerance tasks. In both samples, dissociation was elevated in lifetime attempters compared to ideators (d = 0.28; d = 0.46; ps = 0.01) and slightly elevated in lifetime ideators compared to nonsuicidal individuals (d = 0.19, p = .02; d = 0.24, p = .47), though this effect was non-significant in the latter sample. In Sample 1, dissociation no longer differentiated attempters from ideators after controlling for clinical covariates. In Sample 2, dissociation was unrelated to behavioral pain tolerance tasks, and these tasks did not account for the association between dissociation and attempts. Overall, dissociation differentiated individuals with a history of suicide attempts from those with ideation alone in both samples. Pain tolerance did not explain this association; instead, it is possible that the relationship of dissociation to suicide attempts is due to “third variables” associated with both phenomena, such as symptoms of borderline personality disorder or posttraumatic stress disorder.     

Comparison of Suicide Attempters and Decedents in the U.S. Army: A Latent Class Analysis

A clearer understanding of risk factors for suicidal behavior among soldiers is of principal importance to military suicide prevention. It is unclear whether soldiers who attempt suicide and those who die by suicide have different patterns of risk factors. As such, preventive efforts aimed toward reducing suicide attempts and suicides, respectively, may require different strategies. We conducted a latent class analysis (LCA) to examine classes of risk factors among suicide attempters (n = 1,433) and decedents (n = 424). Both groups were represented by three classes: (1) External/Antisocial Risk Factors, (2) Mental Health Risk Factors, and (3) No Pattern. These findings support the conceptualization that military suicide attempters and decedents represent a single population.     

A Preliminary Examination of Motivating Operation and Reinforcer Class Interaction

The interaction effects between motivating operations and reinforcer classes were evaluated using a superordinate multielement design. Two individuals with developmental disabilities participated. Participants were exposed to a motivating operation condition—pre‐session access until rejection or pre‐session restriction for 24 h—followed by a reinforcer assessment, in which the reinforcer response requirements progressively increased. Reinforcers, stimuli representative of primary, conditioned, and token reinforcers, were available on alternating sessions. The results showed that pre‐session access and restriction produced reliable evocative and abative effects across reinforcer classes. For one of the participants, the effectiveness of the motivating operation appeared to be influenced by the reinforcer class. The interaction effects between motivating operations and reinforcer classes are discussed. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Suicide and the Rorschach: A Rueful Postscript

A review of the Rorschach suicide literature written 10 years ago called for cross validation studies and the use of refined methodology in order to enhance the usefulness of the test as a device for the identification, prediction, and understanding of suicidal ideation and behavior. The present followup review was undertaken and it was concluded that careful and refined research methodology can somewhat enhance sensitivity of the Rorschach to suicidal activity. It was also concluded the replicative research has not supported previously promising Rorschach suicide indicators, suggesting that the Rorschach may be an inappropriate technique for assessing suicidal activity.     

Homicide Followed by Suicide: A Comparison with Homicide and Suicide

Homicide‐suicides are a rare yet very serious form of lethal violence which mainly occurs in partnerships and families. The extent to which homicide‐suicide can be understood as being primarily a homicide or a suicide event, or rather a category of its own is examined. In total, 103 homicide‐suicides were compared to 3,203 homicides and 17,751 suicides. These are all events that took place in the Netherlands in the period 1992 to 2006. Logistic regression analyses show that homicide‐suicides significantly differ from both homicides and suicides with regard to sociodemographic and event characteristics. The findings suggest that homicide‐suicide might be considered as a distinct phenomenon from both homicide and suicide.     

Suicide and occupation: A review

This paper examines the available literature dealing with the relation of occupation to suicide for three occupational categories: health care providers, managerial and professional persons, and military and paramilitary personnel. Following a general introduction, evidence relating to group differences in suicidal behavior is presented and assessed. Sources of bias and inaccuracy in suicide statistics are identified and theories purporting to explain variations in the incidence of suicide are considered. Finally, implications are drawn from the analysis presented and possible directions for future research are identified.     

Treating the Capability for Suicide: A Vital and Understudied Frontier in Suicide Prevention

Current efforts at suicide prevention center largely on reducing suicidal desire among individuals hospitalized for suicidality or being treated for related psychopathology. Such efforts have yielded evidence‐based treatments, and yet the national suicide rate has continued to climb. We propose that this disconnect is heavily influenced by an unmet need to consider population‐level interventions aimed at reducing the capability for suicide. Drawing on lessons learned from other public health phenomena that have seen drastic declines in frequency in recent decades (HIV, lung cancer, motor vehicle accidents), we propose that current suicidality treatment efforts trail current suicidality theories in their lack of focus on the extent to which individuals thinking about suicide are capable of transitioning from ideation to attempt. We summarize extant evidence for specific capability‐centered approaches (e.g., means safety) and propose other options for improving our ability to address this largely overlooked variable. We also note that population‐level approaches in this regard would represent an important opportunity to decrease risk in individuals who either lack access to evidence‐based care or underreport suicidal ideation, as a reduced capability for suicide would theoretically diminish the potency of suicidal desire and, in this sense, lower the odds of a transition from ideation to attempt.     

A Cross Cultural Examination of Creative Problem Solving Style: The Dutch Translation of VIEW

Creativity and Creative Problem Solving are globally important. This study examined the cross‐cultural applicability of creative problem solving styles by translating VIEW: An Assessment of Problem Solving Style from its native English into Dutch and examining its psychometric properties and preliminary validation evidence. In general, support was found for the Dutch translation of VIEW in that it performed similarly to its original with regard to item performance on factor analysis, had acceptable levels of internal consistency and stability over time, and correlated in a similar manner with two alternative measures of style. Implications for future translations were identified.