The association between chronotype and suicidality among students of the medicine and psychology faculties – the mediating role of general mental health indices

ABSTRACT

The aim of the present study was to evaluate whether anxiety and insomnia symptoms, somatic symptoms, and social dysfunction mediate the link between chronotype and suicidality, as depressive symptoms are known to do, among students of the faculties of Medicine and Psychology. Data from a total of 289 students were eligible for the analysis. The students completed the Suicide Behaviors Questionnaire – Revised, Composite Scale of Morningness, General Health Questionnaire. Single-predictor linear regression models were created to predict suicidality, with a subsequent mediation analysis. A preference toward eveningness was associated with an increase in suicidality Somatic symptoms, anxiety/insomnia, and depressive symptoms fully mediated the relationship between chronotype and suicidality. Depressive symptoms were found to present the strongest effect size of mediation. Social dysfunction was associated with both eveningness and suicidality, but did not play a mediating role. There might be a need to evaluate nonpsychotic mental health indices other than depressive symptoms when assessing the link between suicidality and chronotype among students of the faculties of Medicine and Psychology.

KEYWORDS:

• Chronotype
• social dysfunction
• suicide behavior
• mediation

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to express their gratitude to Joanna Grzelińska (Second Department of Psychiatry, Institute of Psychiatry and Neurology, Warsaw, Poland) and Patryk Stecz (Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychopathology, Institute of Psychology, University of Łódź, Łódz, Poland) for their help in the collection of the data and to Edward Lowczowski for providing language help.

Declaration of interest

The authors report no conflict of interest.

Data availability

The database, used to support the findings of this study, may be released upon application to the corresponding author.

Correction Statement

This article has been republished with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Additional information

Funding

The conduct of the research was supported by Medical University of Lodz institutional grant no. 503/1-151-07/503-11-001.