Background: Bullying has regularly been shown to be associated with suicide ideation. However, so far, only a few studies have examined the mechanisms underlying the relationship between bullying and suicide ideation within a theory of suicide. Aim: The aim of the present study was to investigate whether thwarted belongingness and perceived burdensomeness mediate the association between bullying and suicide ideation. Method: A total of 267 outpatients (63.3% female; Mage = 37.52, SDage = 12.80) completed online measures of bullying, suicide ideation, thwarted belongingness, and perceived burdensomeness. Results: Thwarted belongingness as well as perceived burdensomeness fully mediated the association between bullying and suicide ideation – controlling for gender and age. Limitations: Given the cross-sectional nature of the data, only hypothetical conclusions on causality can be drawn. Conclusion: Our results support the hypothesized and theory-derived relations between bullying, thwarted belongingness, perceived burdensomeness, and suicide ideation. In anti-bullying programs it seems to be of particular importance to counter impressions of thwarted belongingness and perceived burdensomeness. Keywords: suicide ideation, bullying, thwarted belongingness, perceived burdensomeness Julia Brailovskaia , Mental Health Research and Treatment Center , Department of Psychology , Ruhr-Universität Bochum , Massenbergstr. 9–13 , 44787 Bochum , Germany , julia.brailovskaia@rub.de
Language: en
", language="en", issn="0227-5910", doi="10.1027/0227-5910/a000596", url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1027/0227-5910/a000596" }