Suicide Ideation among Adolescent American Indians: An Application of General Strain Theory

ABSTRACT

The objective of this study is to compare suicidal thoughts among American Indian/Alaskan Natives (AI/AN) to a series of non-AI/AN comparison groups, using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health. This study uses general strain theory as the guiding framework for understanding differences between racial groups in their suicidal ideation. A statistically significant difference is present between AI/AN and comparisons in suicidal ideation. The factors that may explain these differences addressed in this study include: alcohol abuse, exposure to suicidal behavior of friends and family, depression, and gun access. Implications for prevention and treatment are discussed.

Notes

¹ It is estimated that every 96 minutes there is one elderly (65 and older) death by suicide in the United States (www.cdc.gov/ncipc/wisqars/default.html).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Jerreed Ivanich

JERREED IVANICH is a doctoral student at the University of Nebraska – Lincoln, in the department of sociology. He holds a B.S. in criminal justice from Weber State University and a M.S. in criminal justice and criminology from Georgia State University. He is currently a graduate research assistant in the Research, Evaluation and Analysis for Community Health (REACH) lab at UNL. His research interests include American Indian and Alaskan Native populations, mental illness, social network analysis, and deviance.

Brent Teasdale

BRENT TEASDALE is an Associate Professor of Criminal Justice and Criminology at Georgia State University. He is a graduate of Pennsylvania State University’s Crime, Law, and Justice program. He has published extensively on issues of violence by and against people with mental illness and substance abuse prevention. His co-edited book titled Preventing Crime and Violence was recently published in the Advances in Prevention Science series.