Citation

Saffer BY, Klonsky ED. Arch. Suicide Res. 2017; 21(4): 577-594.

Affiliation

Department of Psychology , The University of British Columbia , Vancouver , BC , Canada.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2017, International Academy of Suicide Research, Publisher Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1080/13811118.2016.1211042

PMID

27440417

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: An increasing number of studies demonstrate that individuals with a history of suicidality exhibit impaired executive functioning abilities. The current study examines whether these differences are linked to suicidal thoughts or suicidal acts - a crucial distinction given that most people who think about suicide will not act on their thoughts.

METHODS: A large online sample of U.S. participants with a history of suicide ideation (n = 197), suicide attempts (n = 166), and no suicidality (n = 180) completed self-report measures assessing executive functioning, suicide ideation and attempts; in addition, depression, self-efficacy, and history of drug abuse and brain injury were assessed as potential covariates.

RESULTS: Individuals with recent suicide attempts reported significantly worse executive functioning than ideators. This difference was not accounted for by depression, self-efficacy, history of drug abuse or brain injury.

CONCLUSION: Self-reported executive functioning may represent an important short-term risk factor for suicide attempts.

Language: en