title: Exploratory study on the prevalence of suicidal behavior, mental health, and social support in female street sex workers in Porto, Portugal.
abstract: We investigated suicidal behavior, mental health, and satisfaction with social support in 52 female street sex workers in Porto, Portugal, using the Suicidal Ideation Questionnaire, the Social Support Satisfaction Scale, and structured interviews. Almost half our interviewees (46.15%) reported high suicidal ideation and 44.2% had made at least one suicide attempt. Most had a mental health diagnosis, most commonly depression (88.2%). Social support and suicidal ideation were moderately negatively correlated. Further research is needed to improve understanding of suicidal behaviors in female sex workers and develop interventions to improve social support and reduce suicidal ideation and associated risk factors.
authors.affiliation: a Psychology Center , Faculty of Psychology and Sciences of Education, University of Porto , Porto , Portugal.
authors.forename: Alexandre
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Teixeira
authors.affiliation: a Psychology Center , Faculty of Psychology and Sciences of Education, University of Porto , Porto , Portugal.
authors.forename: Alexandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Oliveira
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D003863:Depression / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008603:Mental Health; D008875:Middle Aged; D011174:Portugal / Q000453:epidemiology; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D060386:Sex Workers / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D057545:Social Stigma; D012944:Social Support; D059020:Suicidal Ideation; D013406:Suicide, Attempted / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult