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Assessment of suicidal intent by a visual analogue scale
The Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry
|June 1, 1979
Summary
A visual analogue scale effectively measures suicidal patients' mixed feelings about living and dying. This tool shows promise for screening individuals with suicidal ideation.
Area of Science:
- Psychiatry
- Psychological Assessment
- Suicidology
Background:
- Assessing the complex emotional state of suicidal individuals is crucial for effective intervention.
- Existing scales may not fully capture the nuanced feelings of living versus dying during a suicidal act.
Purpose of the Study:
- To describe and validate a visual analogue scale (VAS) for assessing feelings about living and dying in suicidal patients.
- To evaluate the VAS's correlation with a validated suicidal intent scale.
Main Methods:
- Development and administration of a visual analogue scale to assess feelings about living and dying.
- Correlation analysis between VAS scores and scores from a validated suicidal intent scale.
Main Results:
- The visual analogue scale demonstrated face validity.
- VAS scores correlated significantly with the validated suicidal intent scale.
- A significant correlation was found between VAS scores and the objective circumstances of the suicide attempt, indicating awareness of mixed feelings.
Conclusions:
- The visual analogue scale is a valid and reliable tool for assessing suicidal patients' mixed feelings.
- Its ease of administration and scoring make it suitable for screening suicidal patients.
- Findings suggest suicidal individuals possess awareness of their ambivalent feelings, reflected in their actions.