Perceived Racism and Suicide Ideation: Mediating Role of Depression but Moderating Role of Religiosity among African American Adults

Suicide is a public health problem for African Americans who are young and of working age. The purpose of this study was to examine mediated and moderated effects of perceived racism on suicide ideation in a community sample of 236 African American men and women. Measures of suicide ideation, depression symptoms, intrinsic/extrinsic religiosity, and perceived racism were administered. Perceived racial discrimination was directly and indirectly associated with suicide ideation. For participants who reported low levels of extrinsic religiosity, the mediated effect of perceived racism (via depression symptoms) was significant. These findings provide some insight into suicide vulnerability for specific subgroups of African Americans.     

Cultural orientation, family cohesion, and family support in suicide ideation and depression among African American college students

This study extends previous research by examining the role of communalism, family cohesion, and family support in suicide ideation and depression in African American college students. Participants were 188 African American introductory psychology students (126 female, 61 male) from a historically black college. (1) Results showed that communalism, family cohesion, and family support were positively associated with each other. Higher levels of family cohesion and family support were associated with lower levels of suicide ideation and depression. Linear regression analyses showed a main effect for communalism and family support. Having strong communal values was positively related to suicide ideation and depression. Having strong family support was associated with fewer experiences of suicide ideation and depression. Stepwise regression analyses indicated that family support explained more variance in suicide ideation and depression than family cohesion. Implications of these results for future research and practice are discussed.     

Religion and suicidal ideation in a sample of Latin American immigrants

The present study explored the association of measures of religious activities and suicidal ideation in a sample of adult Latin American immigrants (145 women, 56 men). No relationship was found between religious affiliation and suicidal ideation. Self-perception of religiosity, influence of religion, and church attendance were significantly negatively associated with suicidal ideation. A multiple regression analysis showed that influence of religion was a significant predictor of suicidal ideation. The present findings lend empirical support to the notion that high religiosity may play a protective role against suicide.     

Do Extenuating Circumstances Influence African American Women's Attitudes Toward Suicide?

African American women commit suicide less than other U.S. women and men, perhaps partly due to strong, anti-suicide attitudes. To see if suicide attitudes might be softened by extenuating circumstances such as terminal illness, 192 African American and European American women imagined themselves in one of four extenuating circumstances, then completed measures of suicide acceptability and religiosity. Both ethnic groups reported a greater likelihood of suicide when imagining depression, regardless of religiosity. Religiosity, but not extenuating circumstances, corresponded with negative attitudes toward suicide and physician assisted suicide. These African American and European American young women remained steadfastly against suicide, regardless of circumstance.     

Mediators of the Daily Hassles–Suicidal Ideation Link in African American Women

Depressive symptoms and hopelessness as mediators of the daily hassles–suicidal ideation link in low‐income African American women exposed to intimate partner violence (n = 100) were investigated. As hypothesized, daily hassles, depressive symptoms, and hopelessness were each significantly and positively associated with suicidal ideation. Moreover, the relation between daily hassles and suicidal ideation was, in part, accounted for by depressive symptoms and hopelessness. This study demonstrates the importance of assessing for the presence of these risk factors when determining the likelihood that an abused African American woman will consider suicide. The findings further highlight the value of designing and implementing interventions that target the reduction in depressive symptoms and hopelessness in abused African American women exposed to daily hassles to reduce their suicide risk.     

Religiosity,attributional style,and social support as psychosocial buffers for African American and white adolescents' perceived risk for suicide

Psychosocial buffers were evaluated for their relative contributions to adolescents' perceived risk for suicide. A community sample of African American and White adolescents (N = 1,098) rated the likelihood that they would die by suicide and completed standardized measures of depression, hopelessness, intrinsic and extrinsic religiosity, orthodoxy, social support, and causal attributional style. Orthodoxy-commitment to core beliefs-emerged as the single strongest correlate after controlling for the effects of other buffers. The effect of depression on perceived suicide risk was moderated by the adolescent's degree of orthodoxy. Commitment to core, life-saving beliefs may help explain the religion-suicide link for adolescents.     

Risk and Resiliency Factors Influencing Suicidality Among Urban African American and Latino Youth

For decades, suicide rates among minority African American and Latino young people have been stable and, when compared with Whites, relatively low. This is no longer the case, underscoring the need for documenting and understanding the problem of suicidality in this population. We report on the prevalence and predictors of suicidality among 879 urban adolescents in the Reach for Health study. All youth resided in economically disadvantaged neighborhoods; 69% were African American, 16% Latino, and 15% reported mixed or other ethnicity. In the past year, 15% had seriously considered suicide; 13% had made a suicide plan, 11% had attempted suicide at least once, and 4% reported multiple attempts. Risk factors significantly related to suicidal ideation are being female, having basic needs unmet, engaging in same-gender sex, and depression. Resiliency factors include family closeness and, marginally, religiosity. Risk factors related to reports of suicide attempts are being female, being Hispanic, and depression; family closeness is strong resiliency factor. Family composition, ethnic identity, coping style, peer support, and school attachment are not significant correlates of suicidal ideation or attempts.     

A Longitudinal Study of Racial Discrimination and Risk for Death Ideation in African American Youth

Although multiple studies have found that African Americans commonly experience racial discrimination, available studies have yet to examine how perceived racism might be related to suicide vulnerability in African American youth. The purpose of this study was to examine a framework for how perceived racial discrimination contributes to symptoms of depression and anxiety as well as subsequent suicide ideation and morbid ideation. Data were obtained from 722 African American youth at mean age 10.56 years (SD = 0.64); a second wave of data was obtained 2 years later. Results revealed both a direct effect and mediated effects of perceived racism on later suicide and morbid ideation. For boys and girls, the effect of perceived racism was mediated by symptoms of depression. However, the association was mediated by anxiety for girls, but not for boys in the current sample. Implications for future research and interventions are discussed.     

Examining a model of the relation between religiosity and suicidal ideation in a sample of African American and White college students

In this study, a model of certain aspects of religiosity, social support, and depressive symptomatology that would examine how African Americans may be, differentially, protected from suicide was proposed. Intrinsic religiosity was found to be negatively related to depressive symptoms which were positively related to suicide ideation in a sample of 459 college students. Though the model was expected to produce more robust results for African American compared to White students, we did not find this. Further investigation of religiosity and related phenomena (e.g., spirituality) are warranted across age, socioeconomic, and ethnic groups.     

Differences in risk factors for suicidality between African American and White patients vulnerable to suicide

Risk factors for suicidal ideation and attempts have been shown to differ between African Americans and Whites across the lifespan. In the present study, risk factors for suicidality were examined separately by race/ethnicity in a population of 131 older adult patients considered vulnerable to suicide due to substance abuse and/or medical frailty. In adjusted analyses, social support was significantly associated with suicidality in African American patients, while younger age and the presence of an anxiety disorder were significantly associated with suicidality in White patients. The results suggest that race/ethnicity-specific risk profiles may improve the detection of suicidality in vulnerable populations.     

Perceived Discrimination and Suicide Ideation: Moderating Roles of Anxiety Symptoms and Ethnic Identity among Asian American,African American,and Hispanic Emerging Adults

Suicide is a leading cause of death for vulnerable ethnic minority emerging adults in the United States (Web‐based injury statistics query and reporting system [WISQARS], 2015). Perceived discrimination (Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 40, 2011, 1465) and anxiety symptoms (Asian American Journal of Psychology, 1, 2010, 18) are two predictors that are theoretically and conceptually related, but have yet to be examined in a simultaneous model for suicide ideation. Existing theory and research suggest that these variables activate similar pathways (American Behavioral Scientist, 51, 2007, 551). This study sought to address this gap in the literature by examining the simultaneous relationship between perceived discrimination and anxiety symptoms as predictors of suicide ideation. The moderating effect of anxiety symptoms on the relationship between perceived discrimination and suicide ideation was examined in a multiethnic sample of emerging adults. Results indicated that anxiety symptoms moderated the perceived discrimination–suicide ideation relationship for Hispanic emerging adults, but not for their Asian American and African American counterparts. Furthermore, ethnic identity has been shown to mitigate suicide risk in the face of other stressors (Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, 14, 2008, 75). Ethnic identity emerged as a protective factor for Hispanic emerging adults by further interacting with perceived discrimination and anxiety symptoms to negatively predict suicide ideation. The implications of these findings are discussed.     

Relationships of suicide ideation with cause-specific mortality in a longitudinal study of South Koreans

Using 7-year mortality follow-up data (n = 341) from the 1998 National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys of South Korean individuals (N = 5,414), the authors found that survey participants with suicide ideation were at increased risk of suicide mortality during the follow-up period compared with those without suicide ideation. The cause-specific analyses showed that, in men, suicide ideation was significantly associated with mortality due to cardiovascular disease, external causes, and other causes. However, there was no significant association between suicide ideation and cause-specific mortality in women. The relationship between suicide ideation and cause-specific mortality in men was not fully explained by baseline health status, socioeconomic status, health behavior, or psychosocial factors.     

Factors Associated with Suicide Ideation among American Indian Adolescents: Does Culture Matter?

Data from self-report surveys of 1,353 high school students representing three culturally distinct American Indian tribes were analyzed for tribal differences in factors associated with suicidal ideation. In the multivariate analysis, no single correlate of suicide ideation was common to all three tribes. The correlates of suicide ideation were consistent with each tribe's social structure, conceptualization of individual and gender roles, support systems, and conceptualization of death. These results underscore the heterogeneity of suicide ideation across three distinct American Indian tribes consistent with their cultural heterogeneity. Suicide prevention and screening programs may be difficult to adapt from one tribe to another.     

Racial differences in self-disclosure of suicidal ideation and reasons for living: implications for training

Racial differences in suicidal self-disclosure and reasons for living were investigated in 2 separate studies. In Study 1, a random sample of archival client and therapist intake data from a university counseling center for 1 year was examined, and results indicate that ethnic minority clients do not self-disclose suicidal ideation as readily as their nonethnic minority peers. In addition, a significantly higher number of ethnic minority clients were deemed "hidden ideators" because their suicidal ideation only became evident when a counselor performed a suicide risk assessment. Only 1 of the 36 ethnic minority clients with suicidal ideation in the sample voluntarily self-disclosed this ideation at intake without an assessment by the therapist. Study 2 used the Reasons for Living Inventory (RFL) and compared African American and European American college students from an introductory psychology course. The RFL is a useful instrument to compare potential race differences in reasons people report for choosing not to kill themselves, because it does not require respondents to self-disclose (or to have) current suicidal ideation. The results from Study 2 indicate European Americans report fewer reasons for choosing not to kill themselves than their African American peers and that African Americans scored significantly higher than European Americans on the moral objections and survival and coping beliefs subscales of the RFL. Implications for training counselors in suicide risk assessment, prevention, and treatment with ethnic minorities are discussed.     

Suicide Ideation and Attempts among Low‐Income African American Adolescents

We examined the impact of risk and protective factors on the odds that African American adolescents seriously think about or attempt suicide. Data from students in grades 5–12 in a mostly urban, southeastern U.S. school district were analyzed. Findings support earlier work documenting differences in gender and grades. Risk factors were uniformly significant in understanding both ideation and attempts. Protective factors were not consistent predictors; the lowering role of religious protective factors was limited, though student's belonging to or their perception of belonging to a spiritual community was a significant factor in lowering the odds of suicide ideation.     

Suicide and African American teenagers: risk factors and coping mechanisms

In this study we investigated whether locus of control, hopelessness, and depression were primary risk factors for suicide ideation and attempts in African American youth, and whether congruency between locus of control and religious coping style reduced suicide risk. The sample consisted of 176 African American high school students (115 females; 61 males). Multiple and logistic regression were used to determine relationships among study variables. Depression was found to mediate the relationship between hopelessness and suicidal behaviors. External locus of control led to greater risk for hopelessness and depression, with a trend in the predicted direction for suicide attempts. Religious coping style alone was not always associated with reduction of risk of suicidal behaviors, yet some evidence suggests that congruency between locus of control and religious coping style reduces risk. Results provide additional support for suicide interventions to target depressive symptoms. Results also highlight the importance of examining the role of culturally salient variables such as fatalism and religious coping style when developing intervention programs for suicide.     

Association Between Suicidal Ideation and Exposure to Suicide in Social Relationships Among Family,Friend, and Acquaintance Survivors in South Korea

Exposure to suicide in social relationships may be associated with suicidal ideation among survivors. In South Korea, which is known for having the highest suicide rate among OECD countries, exposure to suicide in social relationships can have serious consequences as social relationships are greatly emphasized in the society. The purpose of this study was to examine the association between survivors' suicidal ideation and their exposure to suicide in close relationships. Data collected through a telephone survey of a total of 1,000 men and women selected from across the nation using a stratified sampling method were analyzed. The results show that individuals who lost a family member, friend, or acquaintance in their lifetime are 4.5 times, 3.7 times, 2.2 times, respectively, more likely to have suicidal ideation in the past year compared to those without such experience. These findings suggest that special intervention for suicide survivors should be considered for those who experience suicide in close relationships.     

Differences in nonfatal suicide behaviors among Mexican and European American middle school children.

This report describes ethnic and gender differences in suicide ideation among two large samples of middle school students in New Mexico (n = 2,140) and Texas (n = 1,302). Students completed a self-administered questionnaire on suicide ideation and psychosocial risk factors. Mexican Americans in both samples reported significantly higher prevalence of suicide ideation than did their European American counterparts. Mexican Americans were 1.8 times more likely to have high suicide ideation than European Americans. The suicide ideation risk for Mexican Americans remained unchanged in both samples after adjusting for gender, age, family structure, depression, low social support, and self-esteem. This study indicates that ethnicity plays an important role in suicidal ideation, but the mechanism remains unclear.     

Suicidal behavior, negative affect, gender, and self-reported delinquency in college students

The associations among suicidal behavior, negative affect, and delinquency were assessed via an anonymous self-report survey administered to male and female college students ( N = 383). Contrary to our hypothesized results, there were no gender differences in rates of suicidal ideation and attempts. Confirming our hypotheses about gender differences, college men did report significantly more delinquent behavior than college women. College men also scored higher on the suicide-proneness scale, which contained a mixture of death-related, risk-related, and negative self- and health-related items. Furthermore, as predicted, college students with a history of depression, suicide ideation, and/or suicide attempts all reported significantly more delinquent behavior. Self-reported delinquency and current levels of depressive symptomology emerged as significant predictors of suicide-prone behavior for both college men and women, explaining 34% of the variance for women and 17% for men. Levels of engagement in suicide-prone behavior and feelings of depression were elevated in college students with any type of juvenile arrest history. Students with an arrest history were also more likely to have had a diagnosis of depression and to have engaged in suicide ideation in their past. These findings suggest there are complex links between depression, delinquency, and suicidal behavior in college men and women.     

“It's a white thing”: An exploration of beliefs about suicide in the African‐American community

Although there has been an increase in black suicides in the past decades the white suicide rate is still nearly double the black suicide rate for men and women. The question asked is, Why is there relatively little black suicide? One persuasive answer proposed in the literature is that major social institutions, particularly religion and family, in the African‐American community provide amelioration or buffering of social forces that would otherwise promote suicide. We report on a qualitative investigation designed to identify the content of beliefs and perceptions of suicide that may act as a buffer against suicide in the African‐American community. From interviews with black pastors in a southern community we identify an intermingling of religious condemnatory beliefs and secular attitudes about suicide that view suicide as unthinkable sin and define it as a “white thing” alien to the black culture.