Examining a brief suicide screening tool in older adults engaging in risky alcohol use.
Alcohol misuse increases risk of suicidal behavior in older adults. The Depressive Symptom Inventory-Suicidality Subscale (DSI-SS; Metalsky & Joiner, 1997) and its relation to suicide attempt history was examined to see if it differed for older adults as a function of their alcohol use. Structural equation modeling was used in a sample (N=1,061) of older adult outpatients to examine the scale's measurement invariance and population heterogeneity and its relation to suicide attempt history. Analyses supported the equivalence of the DSI-SS in risky and nonrisky drinkers. The DSI-SS significantly predicted past suicide attempts. Findings support the viability of the DSI-SS as suicide screening tool for older adults.
Department of Psychology, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL 32306-4301, USA. ribeiro@psy.fsu.edu
Jessica D
JD
Ribeiro
Scott R
SR
Braithwaite
Jon J
JJ
Pfaff
Thomas E
TE
Joiner
D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000523:psychology*; D000437:Alcoholism / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D015577:Geriatric Assessment / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000379:methods; D008875:Middle Aged; D008960:Models, Psychological; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011594:Psychometrics / Q000295:instrumentation; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D018570:Risk Assessment / Q000379:methods*; D012309:Risk-Taking; D013405:Suicide