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Defense styles in depressed suicide attempters
Author(s) -
CORRUBLE EMMANUELLE,
BRONNEC MARIE,
FALISSARD BRUNO,
HARDY PATRICK
Publication year - 2004
Publication title -
psychiatry and clinical neurosciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.609
H-Index - 74
eISSN - 1440-1819
pISSN - 1323-1316
DOI - 10.1111/j.1440-1819.2004.01233.x
Subject(s) - psychology , depression (economics) , suicide prevention , clinical psychology , suicide attempt , psychiatry , fantasy , poison control , injury prevention , human factors and ergonomics , medicine , medical emergency , art , literature , economics , macroeconomics
Defense styles may discriminate between depressed patients with or without recent suicide attempts. The aim of the present study was to identify which defense mechanisms are associated with recent suicide attempts in depression. The Defense Style Questionnaire (DSQ) was rated at admission by 156 depressed inpatients with ( n = 60) or without ( n = 96) recent suicide attempt. Depression intensity was correlated negatively with mature style, humor and sublimation and positively with projection. Although it was not significantly different in terms of sociodemographic and depression variables, recent suicide attempters had higher scores on immature style, especially acting out, passive agression, autistic fantasy and projection. Prospective assessment of defense styles and suicide attempts should be carried out to determine whether these differences are a cause of imminent suicide attempts in depression. If so, the DSQ may be used in clinical practice to help discriminate depressed patients with high risk of imminent suicide attempt.