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Self‐concealment and suicidality: Mediating roles of unmet interpersonal needs and attitudes toward help‐seeking
Author(s) -
Hogge Ingrid,
Blankenship Paige
Publication year - 2020
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/jclp.22964
Subject(s) - psychology , moderation , interpersonal communication , mediation , moderated mediation , clinical psychology , interpersonal relationship , self disclosure , help seeking , social psychology , psychiatry , mental health , political science , law
Objective We investigated the relationship between self‐concealment—a tendency to hide distressing information—and suicidality, via two mediators: (a) unmet interpersonal needs and (b) help‐seeking attitudes. Method A sample of young adults (18–25 years) was recruited online to complete a self‐report survey questionnaire ( n = 245). A parallel multiple mediation model was analyzed using the PROCESS macro (Hayes, 2013, Methodology in the social sciences. Introduction to mediation, moderation, and conditional process analysis: A regression‐based approach . New York, NY: Guilford Press) in SPSS. Results There was a significant positive relationship between self‐concealment and suicidality. This relationship was partially mediated by unmet interpersonal needs. Although self‐concealment was associated with more negative attitudes toward seeking professional psychological help, these help‐seeking attitudes were not significantly related to suicidality. Conclusions Our results highlight the importance of interpersonal factors in suicide. Unmet interpersonal needs emerged as a mechanism by which self‐concealment contributes to increased suicidality. We review implications for research, clinical practice, and prevention.