title: Are closed-minded people more open to the idea of killing themselves?
abstract: This article summarizes the author's work on Openness to Experience (a personality trait) and suicidal behavior. It appears that people who obtain low scores on an inventory measuring Openness to Experience are less likely to report suicidal ideation but more likely to take their own lives. How can this apparent discrepancy be reconciled? Based on the premise that the expression of suicidal ideation can have adaptive consequences (e.g., by mobilizing family and treatment providers), it is hypothesized that people with major depression who are low in Openness may be at increased risk for completed suicide in part because they are less likely to feel, or report feeling, suicidal.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Center for the Study and Prevention of Suicide, University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, 300 Crittenden Blvd, Rochester, NY 14642, USA. Paul_Duberstein@urmc.rochester.edu
authors.forename: P R
authors.initials: PR
authors.lastname: Duberstein
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000368:Aged; D003865:Major Depressive Disorder / Q000523:psychology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010554:Personality Disorders / Q000523:psychology*; D012307:Risk Factors; D013405:Suicide / Q000523:psychology*