The Willingness to Intervene Against Suicide Questionnaire

Abstract

Three studies resulted in the Willingness to Intervene Against Suicide Questionnaire. College students (ns = 172, 253, and 367) completed an online questionnaire based on theory of planned behavior constructs regarding suicide intervention. Exploratory factor analysis produced 10 factors: intervening will affect the suicidal person and the participant; important others recommend seeking help, suggesting the suicidal person see a counselor, and talking to the suicidal person; interpersonal and intervention self-efficacy; and intention to seek outside help, encourage to seek outside help, and recognize a need for action. The Willingness to Intervene Against Suicide Questionnaire assesses college students' willingness to intervene when someone is suicidal.

Can a social media intervention improve online communication about suicide? A feasibility study examining the acceptability and potential impact of the #chatsafe campaign

“…As this was as an exploratory feasibility study and novel in design, no power calculation was used to determine sample size [ 44 ]. However, one of the main measures used in this study was created with sample sizes ranging from 172–367 [ 41 ]. Therefore, we used this to guide the target sample size.…”

“…Willingness to intervene against suicide online. Participants' perceived ability and intention to intervene against suicide were measured using two adapted subscales of the Willingness to Intervene Against Suicide Questionnaire [41]. The Perceived Behavioral Control subscale comprised 20 Likert-type items and assessed the participant's confidence and belief in their ability to intervene with someone who might be at risk of suicide.…”

Exposure to Self-Directed Violence: Understanding Intention to Help and Helping Behaviors among Adolescents and Emerging Adults

“…This was carried out by drawing from these existing scales and informed by the authors' experience with bystanders of interpersonal violence. Some of the most widely used existing measures are drawn from the work of Aldrich and colleagues and their Willingness to Intervene Against Suicide Questionnaire [40]. We started with their intention to intervene items and made the following adaptations: (1) four were dropped due to our focus on positive helping behaviors (e.g., "Do nothing it was none of my business"); (2) some items were reworded to be meaningful for youth and non-college students (i.e., removed references to RA and campus); (3) item language was simplified for younger adolescents (e.g., "Give the suicidal person the space he or she needs time to heal" was changed to "Give the person time to get better"); and (4) removal of the term "suicidal" person throughout to be applicable to different forms of SDV.…”

“…Items paralleled those in the eight social norms section described above. An additional item was included based on prior work, which asked about giving the person time to get better and represents a more passive response [40]. Response options ranged from 1 (very unlikely) to 4 (very likely).…”

Modeling the Longitudinal Direct and Indirect Effects of Attitudes, Self‐Efficacy, and Behavioral Intentions on Practice Behavior Outcomes of Suicide Intervention Training

“…The theory of planned behavior (TPB) states that beliefs and behaviors are linked (Ajzen, ). Several studies have successfully applied the TPB framework in the development of interventions to increase individuals' willingness to intervene with someone at risk for suicide (Aldrich, Harrington, & Cerel, ; Shemanski Aldrich & Cerel, ; Smith et al., ). Results of these studies support Ajzen's (1991) proposition in that intervening with a suicidal individual is viewed as a positive action and constructive behavior that overall benefits the individual who is suicidal.…”