Risk factors for suicide attempts among low-income women with a history of alcohol problems

Abstract

This study used bivariate and multivariate analyses to examine nine risk factors for suicide attempts among 80 women (51 attempters, 29 controls) with a history of alcohol problems who were recruited from a large, inner-city hospital. Prior studies established that each of the examined factors increased the risk for suicidal behavioral, but these studies have varied according to whether or not they consisted exclusively of persons with alcohol problems. Whereas eight of the nine factors were bivariately associated with suicide attempt status in this study, only three factors (hopelessness, recent interpersonal loss, childhood trauma) remained significant in the multivariate analysis. These findings illuminate the importance of using multivariate analyses when aiming to identify factors that uniquely increase the risk for suicidal behavior among persons with alcohol problems.