Citation

Richie F, Bonner J, Wittenborn A, Weinstock LM, Zlotnick C, Johnson J. Arch. Suicide Res. 2019; ePub(ePub): 1-14.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2019, International Academy of Suicide Research, Publisher Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1080/13811118.2019.1649773

PMID

31369343

Abstract

This study explored the impact of social support on suicidal ideation in 169 prisoners with major depressive disorder, accounting for known demographic, criminological, and clinical risk factors. Greater social support was associated with a lower likelihood of the presence of current suicide ideation. This effect remained significant even after adjusting for other significant predictors of suicide ideation including sex, length of sentence served, severity of current depression, and having prior suicide attempts. This study is the first to explore social support and other known risk factors for suicide ideation in a prison population with major depressive disorder. Our findings demonstrate that even in the presence of significant risk factors for suicidal ideation, social support remained a strong predictor, suggesting the importance of fostering social support in correctional settings.

Language: en

Keywords

Suicidal ideation; prisoners; social support