NCJ Number
139019
Date Published
1992
Length
10 pages
Annotation
Following the suicides of two boys from the same high school in South Australia, a survey of 357 students was conducted to test these hypotheses: that knowledge of a peer's completed suicide is associated with increased suicidal ideation and depression among adolescents attending the same school.
Abstract
The findings showed no statistical evidence of higher levels of reported depression among boys or girls in the index school. However, there was a significant difference in mean depressed subscale scores for those claiming personal exposure to completed suicide. In the index school, one- third of the students reported some suicidal thoughts compared to only one-quarter of the controls. There was a significant correlation between claimed exposure to completed suicide and reported suicidal thoughts, particularly in the control group. There was also a strong association between deliberate self-harm and reported exposure to peer suicide. A second study was commenced when an adolescent girl, attending a different high school, committed suicide several months later. Her journal and notes passed between classmates were used to identify her close circle of friends, considered vulnerable, for immediate personal counseling. 4 tables, 2 figures, and 5 references