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Are some motives more linked to suicide proneness than others?
Author(s) -
Holden Ronald R.,
Kerr Paula S.,
Mendonca James D.,
Velamoor V. R.
Publication year - 1998
Publication title -
journal of clinical psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.124
H-Index - 119
eISSN - 1097-4679
pISSN - 0021-9762
DOI - 10.1002/(sici)1097-4679(199808)54:5<569::aid-jclp2>3.0.co;2-g
Subject(s) - psychology , suicide prevention , human factors and ergonomics , poison control , injury prevention , occupational safety and health , clinical psychology , medical emergency , social psychology , medicine , pathology
This research examines the importance of assessing motivations that crisis patients attribute for considering a suicide attempt. For 251 consecutive patients attending a crisis unit, suicide attempters and ideators indicated agreement with each of 14 reasons for attempting suicide. Principal components analysis of these agreement ratings yielded two factor scales of motives: Extrapunitive/Manipulative Reasons and Internal Perturbations. Scores for internal perturbations correlated significantly with patients' wishes to die, clinicians' ratings of patients' suicidal desire and preparation for suicide, and clinicians' overall evaluation of patients' suicidal risk. Associations between internal perturbations and these suicide measures were nonredundant with hopelessness. It is concluded that evaluating a suicidal person's internal reasons for attempting suicide has unique assessment value. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Clin Psychol 54: 569–576, 1998.