A four‐year longitudinal study examining psychache and suicide ideation in elevated‐risk undergraduates: A test of Shneidman's model of suicidal behavior

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: Using a 4-year follow-up design, this research investigated Shneidman's model of psychache (i.e., intense mental pain/anguish) as the cause of suicide. Operationalizing suicidal manifestations using suicide ideation, we evaluated Shneidman's assertion that psychache is the prominent predictor of suicide ideation and that other suicide-related psychological variables associate with suicide ideation only through psychache. METHOD: Eighty-two undergraduates at elevated suicide risk were assessed at baseline and follow-up with measures of suicide ideation and three psychological predictors: depression, hopelessness, and psychache. RESULTS: At baseline, only psychache and neither depression nor hopelessness contributed significant, unique information to statistically predicting suicide ideation. For 4-year change in suicide ideation, only psychache and neither depression nor hopelessness provided significant, unique information. CONCLUSIONS: Results provided partial support for Shneidman's contention of the importance of psychache for suicidal behavior and that other psychological factors are only important to suicide insofar as they relate through psychache.

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