Identify and explain the risk factors associated with suicide
What will be an ideal response?
Family history: If a family member has committed suicide, there is an increased risk that someone else in the family will also. Research has shown that the offspring of family members who have attempted suicide had six times the risk compared to the offspring of nonattempters. If a sibling was the suicide attempter, this increased the risk even more.
Neurobiology: Research indicates that low levels of serotonin may be associated with suicide and violent suicide attempts. Low levels of serotonin are associated with impulsivity, instability, and a tendency to overreact in situations.
Existing psychological disorders: More than 80 percent of the people who kill themselves have an existing psychological disorder, usually a mood disorder, substance use disorder, or impulse control disorder. Hopelessness, a specific component of depression, is a strong predictor of suicide. Alcohol use and abuse are associated with 25 to 50 percent of all suicides and are especially prominent in adolescent suicides
Stressful life events: The most important risk factor for suicide appears to be a severe, stressful event. Often, a stressful event can put the person over the edge.
You might also like to view...
Your textbook discusses the case of Stephanie, who is a victim of rape. For months after her assault, Stephanie was constantly on the lookout for new threats. This condition is called
a. hypersensitivity. b. hypovigilance. c. hypervigilance. d. Korsokov's syndrome.
What do the Bayley Scales of Infant Development measure?
A. motor skills, language use, adaptive behavior, and personal- social behavior B. language skills and adaptive behavior C. object identification and memory D. mental and motor abilities
Which substance suppresses the immune system?
a. T-cells b. cortisol c. lymphocytes d. phagocytes
Brain development among hominid species a. occurred very quickly
b. occurred very slowly and unevenly. c. occurred very slowly and gradually. d. has appeared to speed up in the last century.