Life Stressors as the Risk Factor of Suicidal Behavior Among Adolescent and Counseling Implications
Chapter One
Preamble of the Study
Suicide is an intense issue. Very regularly, adolescents end their lives through suicide. According to Horowitz et al. (2001), immature suicides in the U.S. have significantly increased since the 1950’s, and suicide currently positions as the third driving reason for death in this age gathering. Additionally, as indicated by Horowitz et al., 53% of children ages 13-19 have had self-destructive musings. Every year, 250,000 adolescents attempt suicide, and 8%-10% of adolescents in the U.S. attempt suicide at some point in their life. In 1997, 20.5% of adolescents pondered suicide, 15.7% had an arrangement, and 7.7% really made a suicide attempt (Horowitz et al.). In another review of 300 understudies, 20% accepted that they performed self-destructive practices in the previous year (Rubenstein, Heeren, Housman, Rubin, and Stechler, 1989).
Chapter Two
Review of the Related Literature
Introduction
Suicide and Adolescents
In spite of the fact that suicide is just the ninth driving executioner among the overall public, suicide is the subsequent driving reason for death in adolescents; in addition, the pace of youthful suicides has almost significantly increased since the 1950’s (King, Price, Telljohann, and Wahl, 1999). Fremouw, Callahan, and Kashden (1993) revealed in 1987 that 4,924 adolescents ended it all in the age scopes of 15-24. This records for 12.9 suicides for each 100,000 adolescents in this age section. This rate has significantly increased since 1957, expanding 222% in a 30-year time frame. The suicide pace of adolescents currently rises to that of general population. The aftereffects of these investigations outline exactly how regularly adolescents are thinking about or endeavoring suicide. The outcomes appear to be shockingly high.
According to Davis (1983), there are many very different motivations for individuals to commit suicide. He asserts that in order to help a suicidal person, one must first know the underlying motivation. One reason someone may commit suicide is to escape a stressful situation. A second is to try to manipulate or change someone else’s behavior. A third is to use suicide as a vehicle to communicate to significant others just how unhappy they are and they need help. According to Davis, these people often have no intention of dying.
Davis (1983) states that there are more factors that may prompt suicide. One is an acquired familial weakness to self-destructive inclinations. Poor psychological wellness or having a psychological issue like sadness or schizophrenia are different variables. Demise or loss of a friend or family member could accelerate discouragement and lead to suicide. Issues with medicate misuse and horrible scores additionally can be antecedents to suicide. For instance, one investigation found that self-destructive practices were higher among understudies who were potential dropouts, putting these understudies in the in danger class (Eggert, Thompson, Herting, and Nicholas, 1995). All this factors contribute to life stressors.
Social isolation was mentioned by Davis (1983) as another factor in adolescent suicides. Having poor social skills and being unable to establish relationships can lead to social withdrawal and ultimately suicide.
Self-esteem
Research reveals that a typical variable and related character factor connected to suicide is self-esteem (Overholser, Adams, Lehnert, and Brinkman, 1995). Self-esteem alludes to the evaluation an individual makes of their incentive as a beneficial person.
As indicated by Overholser et al., individuals who have high self-esteem will in general be certain in their dispositions about themselves and are believed to be happy with their lives.
People with low self-esteem, then again, will in general have a pessimistic perspective on themselves and feel they are clumsy and contemptible. At the point when an individual has a negative perspective on himself or herself, self-destructive propensities are probable results (Overholser, Adams, Lehnert, and Brinkman).
Dori and Overholser (1999) additionally found that low self-esteem is a decent marker of self-destructive ideation. Dori and Overholser did an examination to decide if the degrees of misery, self-esteem, and wretchedness were diverse among the inpatients who ended it all before being conceded versus those inpatients who had not ended it all. They selected 90 adolescents determined to have discouragement. These adolescents extended from 13 to 18 years of age, and they were middle class.
The individuals who attempted suicide had fundamentally lower self-esteem just as more elevated levels of despondency and sadness than their non-self-destructive partners, as surveyed by Dori and Overholser. Self-esteem additionally was seen as a superior pointer of suicide than an individual’s degree of self-destructive ideation in this investigation. Discouraged and sad adolescents who were evaluated as having sufficient degrees of self-esteem were more averse to exhibit self-destructive practices than those with low self-esteem (Dori and Overholser).
Dukes and Lorch (1989) gave a Youth Lifestyles Survey to 9,752 students who were in the 12th grade. They found a disparity between the importance of academic achievement and the importance of personal satisfaction related to doing well academically. These factors were linked with suicidal behavior through the variables of self-esteem, purpose in life, alcohol use, and eating disorders. These authors found that doing well academically was not enough to maintain high self-esteem; personal satisfaction due to doing well must be a component. In their study, Dukes and Lorch also found that low self-esteem was found to be a good predictor of suicidal behavior among these students.
Vella, Persic, and Lester (1996) did a study that explored whether self-reported self-esteem was associated with suicidal behavior after controls for depression were introduced. The Beck Depression Inventory and the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale were given to 131 social science undergraduates. These researchers found that suicidal behavior was negatively correlated with self-esteem. As self-esteem declined, suicidal behavior increased among this college population.
Stress
Along with having issues with self-esteem, those going through adolescence find it to be a very stressful time in a person’s life (Davis, 1983). Stress might be another factor related to suicidal behavior.
Overholser et al. (1995) states that adolescence is a period of self-analysis and turmoil. These stresses may put a strain on a youngster’s self-idea and self-esteem. According to Overholser et al., adolescence is a phase that is associated with an extraordinary number of life changes. Negative encounters and negative life occasions are regular in a youth’s life. Overholser et al. declare that adolescents start managing lives that are unscheduled and non-regularizing, with new encounters of peer occasions, school occasions, and extracurricular exercises. Another stress for adolescents is that they are beginning to turn out to be progressively mindful of contentions, particularly family clashes.
Adams and Lehnert (1997) reviewed studies to examine the relation between prolonged traumatic stress and suicidality as it relates to child abuse and trauma associated with combat. According to Adams and Lehnert, stressful events such as divorce, death, relocation, family arguments, and legal problems are important risk factors that can lead an individual to suicide. These acute and chronic stressors can have additive effects on adolescents, which may lead them to engage in suicidal behaviors. In their review, Adams and Lehnert also found that traumatic stresses such as child abuse and natural disasters may be linked to suicide. Their literature review also implies that there may be a relation between child abuse and suicidal behavior later in life. For example, among college students who were sexually abused, 16% admitted to making a suicide attempt compared to a 6% rate among of those not sexually abused (Adams and Lehnert).
Depression
Depression also appears as a factor related to suicide. Early in the 20th century, it was believed that children and adolescents could not suffer from depression. Later in the century, psychologists changed their minds and accepted that children can get depressed; however, many agreed childhood depression is different from adult depression (Clarizio, 1989). Some typical symptoms of depression in adolescents are melancholy, suicidal behavior, aggressive behavior, sleep disturbances, changes in school performance, diminished socialization, and changes in appetite (Clarizio).
A major cause or trigger of depression in adolescents is thought to be stress. A predisposition to depression may also play a role; nonetheless, the additive stresses of everyday adolescent life often appear to trigger depression (Clarizio). “There is a complex relationship between depression and suicide. Many depressed patients are suicidal, and, conversely, most but not all suicidal individuals manifest depressive mood and symptoms if not depressive illness” (Pfeffer, 1989, p. 63).
Chapter Three
Summary and Conclusions
Counseling implications
This literature review should help counselors understand there are many life stressors related to suicidal behavior among adolescents. The depressed individual is not necessarily the only type of individual most likely to commit suicide. An individual with low self-esteem may be contemplating suicide. Being stressed appears to be another potential indicator of suicidal behavior. Even a personality trait like low self- monitoring may prove to be a predictor. There likely are a vast number of indicators of suicidal behavior. Counselors should become aware of the various life stressors that can predispose an individual to commit suicide.
Conclusion
Further research needs to be conducted to determine whether other life stressors such as financial crisis, movement to new environments etc. are risk factors of suicidal behavior in the adolescent population. Conducting studies like these are not important in themselves, but important as we attempt to develop strategies to identify risk factors for suicide. Adolescents are killing themselves at an alarming rate. Helping counselors and other educational personnel save lives is very important. It is important to conduct further investigations to further our knowledge base in the area of suicidal risk factors.
References
- Adams, D. M., & Lehnert, K. L. (1997). Prolonged trauma and subsequent suicidal behavior: Child abuse and combat trauma reviewed. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 10(4), 619-634.
- de Man, A. F. & Leduc, C. P. (1993). Correlates of suicidal behavior in French-Canadian adolescents: Personal variables, stress, and social support. Adolescence, 28(112), 820-831.
- Beers, M. J., Lassiter, G. D., & Flannery, B. C. (1997). Individual differences in person memory: Self-monitoring and the recall of consistent and inconsistent behavior. Journal of Social Behavior and Personality, 12(3), 811-820.
- Bermans, A. L., & Jobes, D. A. (1991). Adolescent suicide assessments intervention. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
- Clarizio, H. F. (1989). Assessment and treatment of depression in children and adolescents. Brandon, VT: Clinical Psychology Publishing Co. Inc.
- Davis, P. (1983). Suicidal adolescents. Springfield, IL: Charles C. Thomas.
- Dori, G. A., & Overholser, J. C. (1999). Depression, hopelessness, and self-esteem: Accounting for suicidality in adolescent psychiatric inpatients. Suicide and Life Threatening Behavior, 29(4), 309-318.
- Dukes R. L., & Lorch B. (1989). The effect of school, family, self-concept, and deviant behavior on adolescent suicide ideation. Journal of Adolescence, 12, 239-251.
- Eggert, L. L., Thompson, E. A., Herting, J. R., & Nicholas, L. J. (1995). Reducing suicide potential among high-risk youth: Tests of a school-based prevention program. Suicide and Life Threatening Behavior, 25(2), 276-296
