Youth suicide risk factors and attitudes in New York and Vienna: a cross-cultural comparison.
The prevalence of suicide risk factors and attitudes about suicide and help-seeking among New York and Viennese adolescents were compared in order to explore possible cross-cultural differences. Viennese adolescents exhibited higher rates of depressive symptomatology than their New York counterparts and had more first-hand experience with suicidal peers. More attribution of suicide to mental illness was reported in Vienna; yet Viennese youth were less likely than New York adolescents to recognize the seriousness of suicide threats. Help-seeking patterns of Viennese adolescents were influenced by their setting a high value on confidentiality. These cross-cultural differences may reflect the limited exposure of Austrian youth to school-based suicide prevention programs. The findings highlight the need of taking the sociocultural context into consideration in the planning of youth suicide prevention strategies.
Dervic
Kanita
K
Department of Child and Adolescent Neuropsychiatry, Medical University of Vienna, Waehringer Guertel, Vienna, Austria. kanita.dervic@meduniwien.ac.at
Gould
Madelyn S
MS
Lenz
Gerhard
G
Kleinman
Marjorie
M
Akkaya-Kalayci
Tuerkan
T
Velting
Drew
D
Sonneck
Gernot
G
Friedrich
Max H
MH
D000293:Adolescent; D001317:Austria / Q000453:epidemiology; D003431:Cross-Cultural Comparison; D003863:Depression / Q000208:ethnology; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009518:New York / Q000453:epidemiology; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care; D010379:Peer Group; D012307:Risk Factors; D012572:School Health Services; D012737:Sex Factors; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000208:ethnology; D013405:Suicide / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000523:psychology; D000092864:Suicide Prevention