Mapping suicidal behaviour within transdiagnostic emotional systems: a network analysis of at-risk adolescents

Suicidal behaviour is a major public health concern in adolescence. Traditional risk-factor models have shown limited predictive value, highlighting the need for approaches that better capture how emotional processes co-occur and relate to suicide risk. Transdiagnostic frameworks and network analysis may help clarify the role of core emotional dimensions in adolescent suicidality. This study examined the associations between suicide-related thoughts and behaviours and the transdiagnostic dimensions proposed by Brown and Barlow in adolescents with subthreshold anxiety and depressive symptoms.

The sample comprised 476 adolescents (M = 13.77 years; 73.9% female) identified through a multicenter school-based screening study in Spain (n = 8,746). To assess transdiagnostic dimensions of emotional disorders and suicidal behaviours, participants completed the Multidimensional Emotional Disorder Inventory and the SENTIA scale. A psychometric network analysis based on regularized partial correlations was estimated. Separate networks were estimated for adolescents with and without endorsement of suicide-related indicators. A Network Comparison Test (NCT) was conducted to examine differences in network structure, global strength, and individual edge weights between groups.

In the estimated psychological network, intrusive cognitions, and experiential avoidance emerged as the most central nodes, whereas suicide-related thoughts and behaviours occupied a relatively peripheral position. Descriptive network comparisons suggested different configurations across groups: among adolescents endorsing suicide-related indicators, neurotic temperament showed the highest centrality, whereas among those without such indicators, centrality remained concentrated on intrusive cognitions and experiential avoidance. However, the NCT did not identify statistically significant differences in global network structure or global strength between groups.

Suicidal behaviour appears to be embedded in a broader system of transdiagnostic emotional processes. Intrusive cognitions, experiential avoidance, and generalized negative affect may be associated with clinically relevant targets for prevention and intervention. Findings support dimensional and transdiagnostic approaches to understanding suicidal behaviours in adolescents at risk for emotional disorders, while highlighting the need for further research in samples with greater clinical severity.