OBJECTIVE:
Many studies have enlightened the relevance of deepening our knowledge of suicidal ideation among adolescents. However, research has given insufficient attention to the impact of time perspective on suicidal ideation: the present study confirms this relationship in a large sample of adolescents.
METHOD:
A survey was conducted on a sample of 3700 Italian adolescents.
We obtained data using a structured questionnaire addressing suicidal ideation, mental health status, self-esteem, individual and family characteristics, and time perspective (ZTPI) in three temporal frames: the past, present and future, and the attitude related to each one of them.
Data were analyzed using bivariate and multivariate analyses.
RESULTS:
Overall, 9.2% of the sample reported severe suicidal ideation during the past two weeks; 7.6% reported moderate suicidal ideation.
Female adolescents were more likely to report severe suicidal ideation when compared to males (chi((2))(2)=13.38, P=.001). There were no differences regarding age (chi((1))(2)=2.81, P=.245) and SES (chi((2))(2)=8.67, P=.08). The first discriminant function was mostly explained by psychopathological symptoms (General Global Index), self-esteem and two dimensions of the ZTPI (Negative Past and Fatalistic Present).
CONCLUSIONS:
Differences in time perspective dimensions between moderate and severe ideators suggest that these groups should be considered and analyzed as two discrete groups in further research.
2009-01-12
Eng.
European psychiatry : the journal of the Association of European Psychiatrists
Faculty of Psychology, Department of Clinical Psychology, via dei Marsi 78, 00185 Rome, Italy. fiorenzo.laghi [at] uniroma1.it
Eur Psychiatry. 2009 Jan;24(1):41-6
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