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Suicide Ideation and Creative Problem Solving
Author(s) -
Mraz Wayne,
Runco Mark A.
Publication year - 1994
Publication title -
suicide and life‐threatening behavior
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.544
H-Index - 90
eISSN - 1943-278X
pISSN - 0363-0234
DOI - 10.1111/j.1943-278x.1994.tb00661.x
Subject(s) - ideation , creative problem solving , suicidal ideation , psychology , computer science , creativity , suicide prevention , medical emergency , cognitive science , poison control , medicine , social psychology
This investigation utilized the recent technology for the assessment of creativity to examine the association between problem solving and suicide ideation. Three kinds of problem‐finding and ‐solving tasks were administered to 81 (nonclinical) college students. One of these tasks assesses “problem generation” and was expected to be particularly informative, given that individuals considering suicide may perceive many problems but find few solutions. Results supported this expectation: Problem generation scores were significantly correlated with suicide ideation, even after stress was statistically controlled. A secondary analysis suggested that the originality and flexibility of solutions may be influenced by the particular problem an individual faces.