Factor Structure and Measurement Invariance of the Stigma of Suicide Scale-Short Form Among Adolescents and Early Adults in Hong Kong.

Suicide is a global public health concern. The Stigma of Suicide Scale-Short Form (SOSS-SF) is a brief measure on the stigma toward suicide. This study aimed to examine the psychometric properties of the SOSS-SF in a sample of 1,946 adolescents and early adults (M age = 23.3, 69% females) in Hong Kong. The participants completed the SOSS-SF, measures on suicidal ideation and perceived distress, and binary items on lifetime risk behaviors online. Exploratory structural equation modeling evaluated the factor structure and reliability of the SOSS-SF in split samples and its measurement invariance, convergent validity, and discriminant validity in the overall sample. Contrary to a poor fit for the three-factor structure in the original 16-item SOSS-SF, the four-factor model showed a good fit in the revised 12-item version in both subsamples. The four factors (Glorification, Isolation, Disgrace, and Selfishness) loaded significantly on three items each (λ = .52-.93) and had adequate reliability (ω = .78-.88). The SOSS-SF displayed scalar invariance across age group, gender, and suicidal ideation and significant associations with validating variables. These results demonstrate a valid and reliable four-factor structure for the SOSS-SF and support its use for assessment of multifaceted stigma toward suicide.

Who seeks help online? Comparing online and offline help-seeking preferences amongst youths with suicidal ideation.

BACKGROUND: Research consistently report an inverse relationship between suicide risk and help-seeking. The increasingly available internet-based support potentially offers an attractive alternative to traditional forms of assistance. The study compared the characteristics of suicidal youths in Hong Kong and their online and offline help-seeking behaviours. METHODS: Participants (N = 1214, age-range = 15-24 years) responded to the anonymous 2018 Hong Kong Online Survey on Youth Mental Health and Internet Usage. Respondents with suicidal thoughts were classified into those who sought help online and offline, or online only ("online-help"); those who sought help offline only ("offline-help"); and those who never sought help ("no-help"). They responded to questions concerning mental health, perception towards online support, internet use, help sources, and demographic information. RESULTS: The online-help group differed significantly from other groups, with greater suicidal ideation, distress, risk behaviours, and spent more time online for non-work-related purposes. Their perceived benefits of online support include anonymity, avoiding embarrassment, and social support. They are more likely to seek help from a combination of informal and formal sources. LIMITATIONS: No data on whether participants sought help online or offline first, and their current treatment status is available. Our study adopted conveniences sampling, and few respondents have sought help online exclusively. CONCLUSION: Online support offers an alternate way of engaging at-risk youths. Future clinical practice should consider online platforms as a complement, rather than a replacement, of offline platforms.

A decomposition analysis to examine the change in the number of recipients in the comprehensive social security assistance (CSSA) system.

Social security is an important social and public policy measure to help address poverty in any contemporary society. The Comprehensive Social Security Assistance (CSSA) system in Hong Kong provides a safety net for those aged children and adults below 65 years old who cannot support themselves financially. It is designed to bring their income up to a prescribed level to meet their basic needs. The rapid increase in social welfare expenditure in the last decade has become a concern to the Hong Kong SAR Government. The overall social welfare expenditure has accounted for nearly 15.6% of government expenditure in 2018, with the total amount increasing from $58 billion to $90 billion (an increase of 72.4%) for the period 2014-2018. However, the amount spent on CSSA only increased from $20.7 billion to $22.3 billion with an increase of 7.7% only for the same period. The much slower magnitude of increase is related to the reduction in the number of CSSA recipients, which decreased from 237,501 to 185,528 over the period. A decomposition method was used to assess the changes in the number of people in the CSSA system. It showed that the rate of arriving into the system has been decreasing due to a robust economy with a very low unemployment rate; whereas moving out of the system has also been decreasing in the past 5 years. This phenomenon can be partly attributed to the widening of the income gap in the community in the period. Despite the increase in population size, as long as employment conditions remain strong and the momentum of leaving the system can be maintained, the number of CSSA recipients will continue to decrease. However, the results also suggested that a certain proportion of CSSA recipients will not be able to move out of the system and have been trapped. Some innovative methods to help them out of CSSA are discussed. In view of the poor economic outlook arising from the COVID-19 pandemic, it is important for the Government to have effective measures to keep people in their jobs. If the unemployment rate will does not substantially increase and then increase of in CSSA recipients can be contained.