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Protective factors against suicidal behavior in Latinos
Maria A Oquendo1, Dianna Dragatsi, Jill Harkavy-Friedman
1Department of Neuroscience, New York State Psychiatric Institute and Columbia University, New York, NY, USA.
The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease
|June 30, 2005
Summary
Latinos exhibit lower suicidal ideation and less lethal suicide attempts, potentially due to cultural factors. The Reasons for Living Inventory (RFLI) identified protective beliefs in Latinos, such as family responsibility and coping skills, which may reduce suicidal behavior.
Area of Science:
- Psychiatry
- Cultural Psychiatry
- Suicidology
Background:
- Latinos show lower rates of suicidal behavior, but underlying protective factors remain unclear.
- Cultural norms may buffer against suicidal behavior, especially during psychiatric illness.
- The Reasons for Living Inventory (RFLI) assesses protective factors against suicide.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if the RFLI captures protective factors against suicidal behavior in Latino and non-Latino individuals.
- To explore the relationship between ethnicity, cultural constructs, and suicidal behavior.
Main Methods:
- Patients with major depression, bipolar disorder, or schizophrenia were assessed for suicidal behavior and symptomatology.
- The RFLI was administered to measure protective factors against suicide.
- Multivariate analyses examined associations between suicide measures, ethnicity, and clinical/demographic variables.
Main Results:
- Latinos reported significantly less suicidal ideation and made less lethal suicide attempts compared to non-Latinos.
- Latinos scored higher on RFLI subscales for survival/coping beliefs, family responsibility, and moral objections to suicide.
- While ethnicity was linked to less suicidal ideation, moral objections and coping skills showed stronger associations with reduced suicidal behavior overall.
Conclusions:
- Cultural constructs, such as family responsibility and coping beliefs, may mediate protective effects against suicidal behavior in Latinos.
- The RFLI effectively identifies protective factors that may prevent individuals from acting on suicidal thoughts.
- Further research is needed to understand the impact of specific cultural factors on suicidal behavior.