Cultural Moderators of Pathways to Suicide: Application of the IMV Theory Among International Students Within the U.S

The goal of this study was to evaluate whether concepts from the cultural theory of suicide operate as culturally specific motivational and volitional moderators on the pathways to suicidal ideation and suicide behavior as described by the integrated motivational-volitional theory within a sample of international students.

International students (n = 444) were recruited through email advertisements to complete an online survey evaluating entrapment (feelings of being trapped and unable to escape; this could be internal or external), cultural stress, cultural support, idioms of distress, cultural sanctions of suicide, and suicidal ideation and attempts.

Two moderated regression models with 5,000 bootstrapped bias-corrected samples were conducted. Cultural stress was a significant moderator of the relationship between entrapment and suicidal ideation, but cultural support did not moderate the same pathway. Contrary to hypotheses, neither idioms of distress nor cultural sanctions significantly moderated the relationship between suicidal ideation and suicide attempts, although both exhibited a direct main effect. Exploratory post hoc analyses among those with suicidal ideation suggest that cultural sanctions may moderate the relationship between suicidal ideation and attempts when ideation is high.

Experiences of cultural stress may exacerbate the risk for suicide among international students, but the role of other cultural factors is unclear. Further research is needed to identify how cultural components and experiences impact suicide risk among international students.