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Exploring the scope and structure of suicide capability.

Arezoo Shahnaz1, Brian W Bauer2, Samantha E Daruwala2

  • 1Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.

Suicide & Life-Threatening Behavior
|September 14, 2020
PubMed
Summary

Capability for suicide, encompassing fearlessness about death, practical capability, and pain tolerance, can be reliably measured. These factors help predict which individuals with suicidal ideation may progress to attempts.

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Area of Science:

  • Psychiatry
  • Psychology
  • Suicidology

Background:

  • Suicide capability theories propose a link between suicidal ideation and attempts.
  • Existing measures of suicide capability show inconsistent reliability and validity.
  • A need exists for reliable and valid domains of suicide capability.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To identify distinct, reliable, and valid domains of suicide capability.
  • To pool items from multiple existing measures.
  • To enhance understanding of the suicide capability construct.

Main Methods:

  • Exploratory factor analysis of items from multiple suicide capability measures.
  • Online survey administered to 387 US adults.
  • Examination of internal consistencies, intercorrelations, and associations with suicide attempts.

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Main Results:

  • Three domains of suicide capability were identified: fearlessness about death, practical capability, and pain tolerance.
  • These domains demonstrated strong internal consistency (αs = 0.80–0.92) and moderate independence.
  • Fearlessness about death and practical capability uniquely predicted suicide attempt status.

Conclusions:

  • Fearlessness about death, practical capability, and pain tolerance are reliable measures of suicide capability.
  • These domains are relevant for identifying individuals at higher risk of suicide attempts.
  • Further research can refine the understanding and application of these domains.