This paper investigated high school students’ perceptions of their family dynamics and correlated this to levels of depression, suicidal thinking and a history of attempts.
Download here *Adolescent suicide, depression & family dysfunction
Download here *Adolescent suicide, depression & family dysfunction
This study investigated perceived academic performance and self-reported suicidal behaviour in 2,596 adolescents, mean age 13 years, from 27 South Australian high schools. Groups perceiving their academic performance as failing, below average, average and above average were significantly different on measures of self-esteem, locus of control, depressive symptoms, suicidal thoughts, plans, threats, deliberate self-injury, and suicide attempts.
Richardson, A., Martin, G., Bergen, H., Roeger, L. & Allison, S., 2005. Perceived Academic Performance as an Indicator of Risk of Attempted Suicide in Young Adolescents. Archives of Suicide Research, 9:163–176.
This 1993 paper was one of the first attempts in the literature to examine whether certain types of music might be associated with, or even influence, youth suicide. We concluded that vulnerable young people might turn to (for instance) heavy metal music out of rage and resentment, and that some of those might become further depressed by the style of music and/or the lyrics. The paper has been cited often, and other research studies have built on our work.
Download paper here: *Adolescent Suicide Music Preference as an Indicator of Vulnerability
Results from this early study suggested that physical contact experience (frequency and quality of touch) reflects different parenting styles, and may be a vulnerability factor for a range of difficulties among adolescents.
Download here: The Significance of Touch for Perceptions of Parenting and Psychological Adjustment among Adolescents