The Relationship Between Negative Life Events and Suicidal Behavior

Abstract

Suicidal behavior associated with the experience of negative life events is not inevitable. Therapeutically bolstering competence, autonomy, and relatedness may be an important suicide prevention strategy for individuals experiencing life stressors.

Understanding the Association Between Negative Life Events and Suicidal Risk in College Students: Examining Self‐Compassion as a Potential Mediator

“…Consistent with past research, we expected to find NLE to be positively associated with both depressive symptoms and suicidal behaviors (e.g., Bonner & Rich, ; Rowe et al., ). Also, as a multifaceted psychological construct (Muris & Petrocchi, in press; Neff, , ), we expected positive facets of self‐compassion (viz., self‐kindness, common humanity, and mindfulness) to be negatively associated with both indices of suicidal risk.…”

“…Consistent with this view, findings from numerous studies over the past four decades have shown that accumulated negative life events (NLE) is one of the most reliable correlates of greater suicidal risk in college students (e.g., Bonner & Rich, ; Chang et al., ; Dixon, Heppner, & Anderson, ; Heisel, Flett, & Hewitt, ). For example, in a sample of 439 college students, Rowe, Walker, Britton, and Hirsch () found that NLE was positively associated with both depressive symptoms and suicidal behaviors. Yet despite these consistent and convergent findings, what remains unclear is what might account for the positive association between the experience of NLE and suicidal risk in college students.…”

Negative life events and school adjustment among Chinese nursing students: The mediating role of psychological capital

“…A survey conducted by Reyes-Rodríguez et al (2013) found that negative life events increased the prevalence of depression symptoms and its severity among freshmen college students, which were regarded as one of important emotional maladjustment during school life. In addition, there is much evidence showing that negative life events could lead to suicidal behavior and other adverse outcomes across campus life (Rowe et al, 2013;Eisenberg et al, 2007). Consequently, finding ways to weaken the adverse effects of negative life events on school adjustment has become a major concern of researchers and educators.…”

Negative life events and migraine: a cross-sectional analysis of the Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Adult Health (ELSA-Brasil) baseline data

“…There are substantial data about the influence of the occurrence of such events on further development and recurrence of mental health disorders. Aside from the onset of post-traumatic stress disorders, NLEs may influence the course of depression [2,3], anxiety [4,5], suicidal behavior [6] and cognitive performance [7]. …”