Utilizing longitudinal data, we examined how the intersection of race/ethnicity and gender interplay with patterns of suicidal ideation and attempts in the context of social connections appropriate for respondents’ developmental stages over 14 years. Intervening early can decrease lifetime risk. Although longitudinal research has focused on initial and repeated suicide attempts and their severity, there is limited understanding of ideation and attempt patterns from adolescence to adulthood. The dynamic experience of simultaneous biological, social, and emotional changes during adolescence is linked to higher suicidal risk.
This study will inform empirically driven, culturally informed suicide prevention and intervention campaigns for an increasingly diverse population in desperate need of accessible services, given national trends.
Survey data (1994-2008) from the Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health study, n=18,887) examined racial/ethnic*gender ideation and attempt disparities over four waves of data. Latent class analyses described how ideation and attempt patterns present longitudinally and how groups predict different classes based on each Wave and age-appropriate social supports.
Those most at-risk over time disclosed ideation and some attempt risk in early adolescence (Waves 1 & 2) and this group was predominately female. The second most prevalent group initially disclosed ideation in their 20s and predominately identified as non-Hispanic white female. Mother connections were protective for all groups except for Hispanic females. Also unexpected, peer connections were not significant for most groups except for non-Hispanic white males in Wave 3, while Black females who reported stronger school connections had decreased ideation and attempt rates in Wave 1 but not 2 (just one year later). Finally, a negative link between social supports and high-risk ideation and attempt classes were found among Black females, non-Hispanic whites, and Hispanics overall.
As the U.S. becomes more racially and ethnically diverse, understanding the unique ideation and attempt disparities is crucial. Tailoring interventions to include risk and protective mechanisms among intersectional communities could eradicate disparities. Longitudinal studies offer opportunities for upstream prevention efforts and illuminate how protective and risk factors can change over time and even within and among racial/ethnic and gender groups.