The Suicide Dot Probe Task: Psychometric properties and validity in relation to suicide-related outcomes.

BACKGROUND: Attentional biases to suicide-related stimuli have been linked to suicide-related outcomes. However, behavioral tasks that have been previously modified to capture suicide-specific attentional biases have demonstrated inconsistent reliability and validity. Adaptation of the Dot Probe Task, a computerized assessment that has been adapted to study a wide variety of biases, may be a promising candidate for assessing suicide-specific biases. METHODS: In 280 recently discharged inpatients (51% male; Mage = 40.22 years), we evaluated the psychometric properties of a modified Suicide Dot Probe Task. Participants completed this task and assessments of suicidal thoughts and behaviors at baseline and 6-month follow-up. RESULTS: The Suicide Dot Probe Task demonstrated poor-to-moderate internal consistency and poor test-retest reliability, and participant response times were slower to suicide-specific and dysphoric stimuli than positive stimuli. However, there were no differences based on the presence or characteristics of recent or lifetime suicidal ideation or attempts. Participants' suicide-specific biases were not predictive of suicidal ideation or attempts at follow-up. CONCLUSIONS: The Suicide Dot Probe Task exhibited questionable reliability, and differences in attentional biases were not associated with suicidal ideation or attempts. This study contributes to a body of research demonstrating the questionable utility of several behavioral tasks to study suicide-specific attentional biases.

Emotion dysregulation as a mechanism linking posttraumatic stress disorder to subsequent suicidal thoughts and behaviors following inpatient psychiatric discharge.

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a well-known risk factor for suicidal thoughts and behaviors (STBs). However, there is a scarcity of longitudinal studies exploring underlying pathways. This study sought to examine the mechanistic role of emotion dysregulation in the relations between PTSD and STBs following discharge from psychiatric inpatient treatment, a particularly high-risk period for suicide. Participants were 362 trauma-exposed psychiatric inpatients (45% female, 77% white, Mage = 40.37). PTSD was assessed via a clinical interview (Columbia Suicide Severity Rating Scale) during hospitalization, emotion dysregulation was assessed via self-report 3-weeks post-discharge, and STBs were assessed via a clinical interview 6-months post-discharge. St'1ructural equation modeling showed that emotion dysregulation significantly mediated the relation between PTSD and suicidal thoughts (ß = 0.10, SE = 0.04, p = .01, 95%CI [0.04, 0.39]) but not suicide attempts (ß = 0.04, SE = 0.04, p = .29, 95%CI [-0.03, 0.12]) post-discharge. Findings highlight a potential clinical utility of targeting emotion dysregulation among individuals with PTSD to prevent suicidal thoughts following discharge from psychiatric inpatient treatment.