The effect of coping strategies on the risk for suicidal ideation and behavior in adolescents

The aim of this paper was to analyze the predictive effect of coping strategies on the risk for suicidal ideation and behavior in 309 adolescents between 11 and 18 years of age (M=13.51; SD=1.9). This was a quantitative study, with a cross-sectional-correlational design. The Suicide Orientation Scale (Iso-30) and the Coping Strategies Inventory (CSI) were used. Findings suggest that 12.9% of the sample reported high risk of suicide. Adolescents at low risk of suicide, compared with those reporting moderate and severe risk, had higher scores on problem solving, cognitive restructuring, social support, emotional expression, and problem avoidance, and lower scores on desiderative thinking, social withdrawal, and self-criticism. Suicidal ideation and behavior were found to correlate negatively with problem solving, cognitive restructuring, social support, emotional expression, problem avoidance, and positively with desiderative thinking, social withdrawal and self-criticism. Multinomial logistic regression analysis showed that coping strategies explained between 46 % and 56 % of the variance of the risk of suicidal ideation and behavior. Social withdrawal and self-criticism strategies contributed significant effects that increased the probability of high suicide risk. These findings can be used to help guide suicide prevention and intervention strategies in school settings.