Suicide and its association with individual, family, peer, and school factors in an adolescent population in southern Taiwan.

ABSTRACT

A representative sample of 10,233 adolescent students was recruited to examine the rate of suicidal attempt and its correlates in the adolescents living in southern Taiwan. Five questions from the Kiddie Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia (Kiddie-SADS-E) were used to inquire about the participants' suicidality. The associations between suicidal attempt and multidimensional factors were examined by using logistic regression analysis: 9.1% of the participants reported a suicidal attempt in the preceding year. Female gender, low self-esteem, weekly alcohol use, illicit drugs use, depression, high family conflict, low maternal education level, poor family function, low connectedness to school, low rank, poor feeling in peer group, and drop out from school were associated with adolescent suicidal attempt. The rate of suicidal attempt was found to be high in Taiwanese adolescents, and multidimensional factors were correlated to adolescent suicidal attempt.