A CBT-based psychoeducational intervention for suicide survivors: a cluster randomized controlled study

Bereavement following suicide is associated with an increased vulnerability for depression, complicated grief, suicidal ideation, and suicide. There is, however, a paucity of studies of the effects of interventions in suicide survivors.

This study therefore examined the effects of a cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)-based psychoeducational intervention on depression, complicated grief, and suicide risk factors in suicide survivors.

In total, 83 suicide survivors were randomized to the intervention or the control condition in a cluster randomized controlled trial. Primary outcome measures included maladaptive grief reactions, depression, suicidal ideation, and hopelessness. Secondary outcome measures included grief-related cognitions and coping styles.

There was no significant effect of the intervention on the outcome measures. However, the intensity of symptoms of grief, depressive symptoms, and passive coping styles decreased significantly in the intervention group but not in the control group.

The CBT-based psychoeducational intervention has no significant effect on the development of complicated grief reactions, depression, and suicide risk factors among suicide survivors. The intervention may, however, serve as supportive counseling for suicide survivors.