The assessment of suicidal behavior in adolescents.
All available assessment instruments (N = 29) used to study suicidal behaviors in adolescents and young adults (age 12-20) were collected and reviewed. Instruments were found to vary substantially in purpose, format, informat, and theoretical orientation. The items from these tools (N = 461) were categorized according to behavior type (thoughts, feelings, or actions) and content categories (death/life-related, disease-promoting/preventing, injury-producing/reducing, person-reducing/enhancing, and factual information). The majority of the items were found to assess thoughts and were focused on death-related content. Recommendations include the need for more rigorous validation of instruments, clearer operational definitions, additional normative information, and expansion of the pool of available items to encompass a broader array of self-destructive behaviors.
Garrison
C Z
CZ
Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of South Carolina, Columbia 29208.
Lewinsohn
P M
PM
Marsteller
F
F
Langhinrichsen
J
J
Lann
I
I
D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010556:Personality Tests / Q000592:standards; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales / Q000592:standards; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012307:Risk Factors; D013405:Suicide / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D013406:Suicide, Attempted / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D000092864:Suicide Prevention