Conducting suicide research in naturalistic clinical settings

Unique challenges arise for clinical researchers designing studies focused on suicidal behaviors due to the inherently high-risk nature of such research. Traditional approaches to clinical trial design are briefly discussed, highlighting the limitations and obstacles of these approaches when working with suicidal individuals. Using their own personal experiences and setbacks from an ongoing clinical suicidology research program, the authors argue for greater emphasis on effectiveness and translational research designs conducted in naturalistic clinical settings to test the practical utility of empirically-supported treatments for suicidal behaviors, to gain new perspectives on suicidal individuals, and to better understand the nature of suicidal risk.