The indirect effect of perceived burdensomeness on the relationship between indices of social support and suicide ideation in college students.

OBJECTIVE: Research has demonstrated that a lack of social support is related to suicide risk. This study examines perceived burdensomeness and thwarted belongingness, of the Interpersonal Theory of Suicide, as mechanisms of the social support-suicide relationship in college students. METHOD: The study consisted of 207 students from a Midwestern university. Data were collected from 2007 to 2008. Two multiple mediation analyses were conducted to examine whether perceived burdensomeness and thwarted belongingness mediated the relationship between indices of social support and suicide ideation. RESULTS: Perceived burdensomeness mediated the relationships between perceived social support and suicide ideation (95% confidence interval [CI] -.02 to -.00, effect size = -.01) and social connectedness and suicide ideation (95% CI -.03 to -.00, effect size = -.03). Thwarted belongingness did not mediate either relationship. CONCLUSIONS: Results suggest that a lack of social support could lead to perceptions of being a burden on others, which could lead to suicide ideation.

Empirical extension of the interpersonal theory of suicide: Investigating the role of interpersonal hopelessness.

The Interpersonal Theory of Suicide posits that hopelessness about thwarted belongingness and perceived burdensomeness is an important risk factor for the desire for suicide and suicide risk. Past research has indicated that general feelings of hopelessness interact with the constructs of thwarted belongingness and perceived burdensomeness to predict suicide ideation. However, no research has explicitly tested whether hopelessness specific to the interpersonal constructs of thwarted belongingness and perceived burdensomeness predicts suicide ideation and suicide risk. Participants in the current study (N = 173) were undergraduate students oversampled for history of suicide ideation, planning for suicide, and suicide attempt(s). Participants completed study measures online, including a new measure of hopelessness about thwarted belongingness and perceived burdensomeness. Results indicated that a three-way interaction of thwarted belongingness, perceived burdensomeness, and hopelessness about these interpersonal constructs, but not general hopelessness, predicted unique variance of suicide ideation and suicide risk. Results suggest that hopelessness about thwarted belongingness and perceived burdensomeness may be an important target for reducing suicidal desire.

Interpersonal suicide risk for American Indians: investigating thwarted belongingness and perceived burdensomeness.

American Indians (AIs) experience increased suicide rates compared with other groups in the United States. However, no past studies have examined AI suicide by way of a recent empirically supported theoretical model of suicide. The current study investigated whether AI suicidal ideation can be predicted by two components: thwarted belongingness and perceived burdensomeness, from the Interpersonal-Psychological Theory of Suicide (T. E. Joiner, 2005, Why people die by suicide. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press). One hundred seventy-one AIs representing 27 different tribes participated in an online survey. Hierarchical regression analyses showed that perceived burdensomeness significantly predicted suicidal ideation above and beyond demographic variables and depressive symptoms; however, thwarted belongingness did not. Additionally, the two-way interaction between thwarted belongingness and perceived burdensomeness significantly predicted suicidal ideation. These results provide initial support for continued research on the components of the Interpersonal-Psychological Theory of Suicide, an empirically supported theoretical model of suicide, to predict suicidal ideation among AI populations.

Can perceived burdensomeness explain the relationship between suicide and perfectionism?

The perception of being a burden to others has been associated with suicidal ideation and behavior. Maladaptive aspects of perfectionism have also been associated with suicidal thinking and behavior. The purpose of the current study was to investigate whether perceived burdensomeness would act as a mediator between maladaptive perfectionism and suicidal ideation. Results indicated that perceived burdensomeness mediated the relationship between maladaptive perfectionism and suicidal ideation, which suggest that the perception of burdensomeness may be one aspect of the mechanism by which perfectionism can lead to such psychological distress that it becomes a predictor of suicidal ideation. Clinical implications of this relationship are discussed.

The Great Black Hope: Hope and its relation to suicide risk among African Americans.

Positive psychology has garnered considerable scholarly interest recently and has been suggested to hold promise in the application to suicide research and prevention; however, empirical research has lagged behind these suggestions. This is the first study to examine the relationship between hope and a specific theory of suicide in African Americans. It was hypothesized that (1) hope would negatively predict the interpersonal suicide risk factors of burdensomeness and thwarted belongingness; and positively predict acquired capability to enact suicide; (2) hope would negatively predict suicidal ideation; and (3) the interpersonal suicide risk factors would predict suicidal ideation. Results were primarily as predicted. Implications for hope theory and Joiner's theory of suicidal behavior are discussed, as well as implications for clinical practice.

Hope as a predictor of interpersonal suicide risk.

The current study hypothesized that (1) hope would negatively predict burdensomeness, thwarted belongingness, and acquired capability to enact lethal injury; (2) hope would negatively predict suicidal ideation; and (3) the interpersonal suicide risk factors would predict suicidal ideation. Results indicated that hope negatively predicted burdensomeness and thwarted belongingness, but positively predicted acquired capability to enact suicide. Contrary to our second hypothesis, hope did not predict suicidal ideation, but interpersonal risk factors for suicide predicted suicidal ideation. Results are discussed in terms of implications for hope theory and Joiner's (2005) interpersonal risk factors for suicide, and for clinical practice.