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Dimensions of Perfectionism, Hopelessness, and Attempted Suicide in a Sample of Alcoholics
Author(s) -
Hewitt Paul L.,
Norton G. Ron,
Flett Gordon L.,
Callander Lois,
Cowan Tim
Publication year - 1998
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.1998.tb00975.x
Subject(s) - perfectionism (psychology) , beck hopelessness scale , psychology , clinical psychology , depression (economics) , personality , suicide attempt , psychiatry , discriminant function analysis , suicide prevention , poison control , beck depression inventory , medicine , medical emergency , anxiety , social psychology , machine learning , computer science , economics , macroeconomics
This study assessed whether specific dimensions of perfectionism and hopelessness were elevated in individuals who had made a serious suicide attempt in comparison to individuals with no history of suicide attempts. A sample of 39 inpatients with alcoholism who had made a serious suicide attempt and a matched sample of 39 inpatients with alcoholism but no history of suicide attempts completed the Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale, the Hopelessness Scale, ratings of achievement and social hopelessness, and the Beck Depression Inventory. The attempter group had higher scores on socially prescribed perfectionism, generalized hopelessness, achievement hopelessness, social hopelessness, and depression. A discriminant function analysis revealed that depression, social hopelessness, socially prescribed perfectionism, and other‐oriented perfectionism were unique discriminators of the suicide groups. The results are discussed in terms of the importance of social personality variables in attempted suicide.