Citation

Lamis DA, Malone PS. Suicidol. Online 2012; 3: 4-23.

Affiliation

Department of Psychology, University of South Carolina

Copyright

(Copyright © 2012, The author(s), Publisher Medical University of Vienna, Department of Psychoanalysis and Psychotherapy)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Suicidal behavior and alcohol use are major public health concerns in the United States; however the association between these behaviors has received relatively little empirical attention. The relative lack of research in this area may be due in part to the absence of theory explaining the alcohol use-suicidality link in the general adult population. The present article expands upon Conner, McCloskey, and Duberstein's (2008) model of suicide in individuals with alcoholism and proposes a theoretical framework that can be used to explain why a range of adult alcohol users may engage in suicidal behaviors. Guided by this model, we review and evaluate the evidence on the associations among several constructs that may contribute to suicidal behaviors in adult alcohol consumers. The current framework should inform future research and facilitate further empirical analyses on the interactive effects among risk factors that may contribute to suicidal behaviors. Once the nature of these associations is better understood among alcohol using adults, more effective suicide prevention programs may be designed and implemented.

Keywords: Suicidal behavior, alcohol, impulsivity, aggression

Available: http://www.suicidology-online.com/pdf/SOL-2012-3-4-23.pdf

Copyrights belong to the Author(s). Suicidology Online (SOL) is a peer-reviewed open-access journal publishing under the Creative Commons License 3.0.