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Randomized Controlled Trial
. 2023 Jun;71(3-4):453-464.
doi: 10.1002/ajcp.12663. Epub 2023 Apr 12.

Longitudinal patterns and predictors of suicidal ideation in African American adolescents

Christopher R Whipple  1 , W LaVome Robinson  2 , Caleb E Flack  3 , Leonard A Jason  2 , Kate Keenan  4
Affiliations
Randomized Controlled Trial

Longitudinal patterns and predictors of suicidal ideation in African American adolescents

Christopher R Whipple et al. Am J Community Psychol. 2023 Jun.

Abstract

Suicide rates among African American adolescents have increased dramatically. Suicidal ideation is associated with both suicide attempts and completions, thus understanding ideation patterns and predictors in African American adolescents is critical to informing prevention efforts. This study recruited 160 African American ninth grade students. Participants were those students randomized to the control condition of a randomized controlled preventive intervention. Of the 160 participants, 99 completed all assessment points and were included in latent transition analyses. We assessed participants four times: baseline then again at 6-, 12-, and 18-month postbaseline. Constructs of interest for this study included suicidal ideation, depression, hopelessness, and community violence exposure. A 2-class model (i.e., low ideation [LI] and high ideation [HI]) characterized ideation at each time point. A total of 86%-90% of participants were in the LI class in any given time point and 27.3% of participants were in the HI class at least once. Participants in the LI class tended to stay in that class, whereas those in the HI class often transitioned to the LI group. Depression and hopelessness, but not exposure to community violence, predicted HI class membership. Findings suggest that (a) most African American adolescents may experience suicide ideation at some point in time, (b) a concerning proportion of African American adolescents may experience high ideation, (c) high ideation is often time-limited, and (d) depression and hopelessness predict high ideation.

Keywords: African American; adolescent; latent transition analysis; suicidal ideation.

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Conflict of interest statement

CONFLICT OF INTEREST STATEMENT

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Class structure of suicidal ideation at each measurement wave. SUI1 = “I had thoughts about death;” SUI2 = “I felt my family and friends would be better off if I were dead;” SUI3 = “I thought about killing myself;” SUI4 = “I felt that I would kill myself if I only knew a way;” HI, high ideation group; LI, low ideation group
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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