Psychosocial and Cultural Correlates of Suicidal Ideation Among American Indian Early Adolescents on a Northern Plains Reservation

Abstract

Although research has increased concerning the psychological and social correlates of American Indian adolescent suicidal ideation, little is known about the precursors to suicidal ideation with the early adolescent age group. In this study, we examined a number of cognitive, behavioral, and emotional correlates of suicidal ideation among 122 American Indian middle school youth who lived on a reservation in the Northern Plains area of the United States in February 2006. The participants were on average 12.4 years old, and about 20% reported that they had made a nonfatal suicide attempt at some time in their lives. When using a multivariate model (adjusted R ² of .70), depression and substance use were the only significant predictors of suicidal ideation as measured by the Suicidal Ideation-JR scale (Reynolds, 1988). We suggest potential ways in which variables such as gender, friend and family member suicidal behavior, and engagement in traditional activities may affect suicidal ideation through their effects on depression and substance use. We recommend that suicide prevention programs with American Indian early adolescents draw on cognitive-behavioral interventions emphasizing the strengths of select cultural tenets in tandem with substance abuse prevention strategies that appear promising.

Notes

*Correlation is significant at the .05 level, two-tailed.

**Correlation is significant at the .01 level, two-tailed.

¹Research has not yet been definitive on whether substance abuse reflects a failed attempt to regulate depressive tendencies or whether substance abuse results in depression in adolescents who demonstrate suicidal ideation and attempts. For example, see King et al. (1996) and Overholser, Freiheit, and DiFilippo (1997).