Examining optimism and flourishing as protective factors of suicidality across the adult lifespan: A cross-sectional investigation in three Spanish age groups.

We examined optimism and flourishing as unique protective predictors of suicidality (viz., suicidal ideation and suicidal behaviors) in a cross-sectional study of young adults (18-35 years), middle-aged adults (36-55 years), and older adults (≥56 years). Young adults were found to have higher levels of suicidal ideation and suicidal behaviors compared to middle-aged and older adults. Controlling for depressive symptoms, the results of conducting regression analyses consistently implicated flourishing as a distinct predictor of lower suicidal ideation and suicidal behaviors in young adults and middle-aged adults. However, for older adults, only optimism was found to be a unique predictor of lower suicidal ideation and suicidal behaviors. Implications of the present findings for understanding the differential role of optimism and flourishing in accounting for suicidality across the adult lifespan are discussed.

Validity of the Frequency of Suicidal Ideation Inventory in Brazilian adults.

We examined the validity of the Brazilian Frequency of Suicidal Ideation Inventory (FSII-Br), an adaptation of the Frequency of Suicidal Ideation Inventory (FSII), in 946 Brazilian undergraduates. Confirmatory factor analysis of the FSII-Br demonstrated a one-factor model accounting for 62.39% of the variance in FSII-Br scores with a good FIT index. Correlation analyses demonstrated that the FSII-Br was positively correlated with both measures of suicide ideation and suicide risk (viz., depressive symptoms, anxious symptoms, and hopelessness), providing construct validity. Thus, the FSII-Br was found to be a promising tool in assessing suicide risk among Brazilian adults.

Beyond the Role of Interpersonal Violence in Predicting Negative Affective Conditions in Adults: An Examination of Hope Components in Chinese College Students.

With the growth of positive psychology during the past two decades, increased research has been focused on identifying human virtues that not only foster well-being but also act as positive processes that mitigate the impact of life adversities. Thus, it is useful to examine how positive processes, such as hope, may impact individuals' psychological adjustment following adversities. This study investigated the relationships among interpersonal violence, hope, as a key human strength, and negative affect conditions in a large sample (N = 737) of Chinese male and female (Nfemale = 409) college students. Participants completed measures assessing prior exposure to interpersonal violence, levels of both hope components (i.e., agency and pathways), negative affect, depressive symptoms, and suicidal ideation. Results from correlational analyses showed that exposure to interpersonal violence was positively and hope was negatively correlated with negative affective conditions. However, hope agency was more strongly correlated with those outcomes than hope pathways. In addition, three separate hierarchical regression analyses indicated that after accounting for demographics (i.e., age and sex) and interpersonal violence, within hope components, only hope agency remained as strong concurrent predictors of negative affective conditions. The present findings in this Chinese sample are consistent with those obtained from Turkey and the United States samples, adding evidence to the more robust role of hope, and hope agency in particular, in predicting negative psychological adjustment associated with interpersonal violence. Efforts made to address the absence of hope agency may be particularly important in future attempts to mitigate negative affective conditions linked to interpersonal violence among Chinese college students.

Coping styles as predictors of negative affective conditions in Asian Indians: does being optimistic still make a difference?

The present study examined the role of optimism, as measured by the Life Orientation Test-Revised, and coping styles, as measured by the COPE scale, in predicting negative affective conditions (viz., depressive symptoms, stress, and negative affect) among 386 Asian Indian young adults (197 females and 189 males). Results from our hierarchical regression analyses indicated that coping styles accounted for a medium-large amount of variance in negative affective conditions, after controlling for demographic factors (i.e. age, gender, parent's education, and monthly income). Five coping styles were significant in predicting negative affective conditions across all three indices; mental disengagement, denial, and venting emotions were found to be maladaptive, while positive reinterpretation and humor were found to be adaptive among Asian Indian young adults. Furthermore, when optimism was included in the prediction model, optimism consistently accounted for additional variance in negative affective conditions, beyond coping styles. Due to the additional variance among negative affective conditions accounted for by optimism when compared to coping, we advise that mental health professionals consider prioritizing the reinforcement of positive expectancy in addition to enhancing adaptive coping styles and reducing the use of maladaptive coping among Asian Indians.

Hope as a Process in Understanding Positive Mood and Suicide Protection.

Background: According to the broaden-and-build model of positive mood, positive emotions are believed to broaden cognition resources and build psychological resiliency, to help incur positive psychological outcomes. Aim: We examined hope as a potential mediator of the association between positive mood and suicide protection (viz., life satisfaction and reasons for living) in adults. We hypothesized that positive mood would be associated with greater suicide protection through broadening hope agency and building hope pathways. Method: A sample of 320 college students completed measures of positive emotions, hope, and suicide protection. Results: Results from bootstrapped mediation testing indicated that hope agency, but not hope pathways, partially or fully mediated the relationship between positive mood and suicide protection. Limitations: It is not clear whether these findings are generalizable to a more diverse adult population. Also, it is not possible to rule out alternative causal models involving positive emotions and suicide protection. Conclusion: These findings provide some promising preliminary evidence for how positive emotions might help build hope agency to foster greater suicide protection in adults.

Negative life events and suicide risk in college students: Conditional indirect effects of hopelessness and self-compassion.

OBJECTIVE: Suicide risk is a significant public health concern for college students and may be exacerbated by hopelessness resulting from negative life events (NLE), yet may be ameliorated by self-compassion. We examined the mediating role of hopelessness in the relation between NLE and suicidal behavior, and the moderating influence of self-compassion on all model paths. Participants: Participants were 338 undergraduates (89% white; 67% female). Data were collected from December 2014 to December 2015. Methods: Participants completed the Life Events Checklist for College Students, Beck Hopelessness Inventory, Self-Compassion Scale, and Suicidal Behaviors Questionnaire - Revised. Results: Negative life events were related to greater hopelessness and, in turn, to more suicidal behavior, yet self-compassion attenuated this effect. Conclusions: Self-compassion may buffer the NLE-hopelessness linkage, thereby reducing suicide risk among college students. Therapeutic promotion of self-compassion, and reduction of hopelessness, may be important suicide prevention strategies on college campuses.

Coping and Suicide in College Students.

Background: Transitioning to college life in young adulthood can represent a challenging developmental period and college students are at heightened risk for engaging in suicidality. Aims: We aimed to investigate the roles dispositional optimism and coping strategies play in suicide risk (viz., suicidality) and suicide protection (viz., reasons for living) in college students. Method: A sample of 252 American college students were surveyed using anonymous questionnaires and hierarchical regression analyses were conducted to analyze the data. Results: Coping strategies, as a set, played an important role in both suicidality and reasons for living, after controlling for demographic factors (age and sex). When dispositional optimism was entered into the model, it was found to account for a significant amount of additional unique variance in both suicidality and reasons for living, even after accounting for coping. Limitations: It is unknown whether optimism remains meaningful in its association with suicide risk and protection beyond coping in other populations. Conclusion: Effective coping and optimism are associated with decreased suicide risk and increased suicide protection. Our findings point to the consistent role of dispositional optimism, over coping, in both suicide risk and protection.

Optimism and gratitude on suicide risk in Spanish adults: Evidence for doubling up or doubling down?

OBJECTIVE: The present study examines the role of optimism and gratitude as predictors of suicide risk, namely depressive symptoms and suicide ideation. Beyond their expected predictive role, optimism and gratitude were also hypothesized to interact together to predict both suicide risk outcomes. METHODS: A sample of 1,013 Spanish adults (521 females) participated in this study. The average age was 39.63 years old (standard deviation = 16.19; range 16-82). RESULTS: Results indicated that the optimism × gratitude interaction term significantly augmented the prediction of both depressive symptoms and suicide ideation. Specifically, pessimists presented with a higher risk of suicide, but the effect was weaker among those individuals with higher levels of gratitude. Alternatively, optimists with high gratitude showed the highest amount of protection from suicide risk. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings are the first to show how optimism and gratitude might interact as a positive psychological variable to confer greater personal resources in protecting individuals against suicide risk.

Frequency of suicidal ideation inventory: psychometric properties of the spanish version / Inventario de Frecuencia de Ideación Suicida: Propiedades Psicométricas de la Versión Española

BACKGROUND: The Frequency of Suicidal Ideation Inventory (FSII) is a new and brief measure designed to assess for suicide ideation frequency in the previous year. To provide evidence of the reliability and validity for the FSII in a Spanish-speaking community, the present study examined the psychometric properties of the Spanish version of the FSII (FSII-S) in a sample of 1,013 adults from southern Spain (51.4% women), ranging from 18 to 82 years old. METHOD: In addition to the FSII-S, the participants completed the following measures: Suicidal Behaviors Questionnaire-Revised, Beck Depression Inventory, Positive and Negative Affectivity Scale, Flourishing Scale, and Satisfaction with Life Scale. RESULTS: The results of Confirmatory Factor Analysis indicated a good fit for a one-dimensional model of the FSII-S, and high reliability (a = .89). FSII-S scores correlated negatively with suicide protective factors, and positively with suicide risk factors. Multi-group analyses showed the invariance of the factor structure of FSII-S across gender and age. CONCLUSIONS: In line with studies in other countries, these findings provide evidence of the validity, reliability, and invariance of the FSII-S as a brief measure of suicidal ideation frequency in Spanish adults

ANTECEDENTES: el Inventario de Frecuencia de Ideación Suicida (FSII) es una medida nueva y breve que evalúa la frecuencia de ideaciones suicidas en el último año. Para proporcionar evidencias de fiabilidad y validez del FSII en la comunidad hispano-hablante, el presente estudio examinó las propiedades psicométricas de la versión española del FSII (FSII-S) en una muestra de 1.013 adultos del sur de España (51,4% mujeres), con un rango de edad de 18 a 82 años. MÉTODO: además del FSII-S, los participantes completaron las siguientes medidas: Cuestionario Revisado de Comportamientos Suicidas, Inventario de Depresión de Beck, Escala de Afectividad Positiva y Negativa, Escala de Plenitud y Escala de Satisfacción Vital. RESULTADOS: los resultados de la estructura interna indicaron un buen ajuste del modelo unidimensional del FSII-S y una alta fiabilidad (a = .89). Las puntuaciones del FSII-S correlacionaron negativamente con factores protectores del suicidio y positivamente con factores del riesgo suicida. Los análisis multigrupos mostraron invarianza de estructura factorial del FSII-S por género y edad. CONCLUSIONES: consistente con estudios en otros países, estos hallazgos proporcionan evidencia de la validez, fiabilidad e invarianza del FSII-S como medida breve de frecuencia de ideación suicida en adultos españoles

Frequency of Suicidal Ideation Inventory: Psychometric Properties of the Spanish Version.

BACKGROUND: The Frequency of Suicidal Ideation Inventory (FSII) is a new and brief measure designed to assess for suicide ideation frequency in the previous year. To provide evidence of the reliability and validity for the FSII in a Spanish-speaking community, the present study examined the psychometric properties of the Spanish version of the FSII (FSII-S) in a sample of 1,013 adults from southern Spain (51.4% women), ranging from 18 to 82 years old. METHOD: In addition to the FSII-S, the participants completed the following measures: Suicidal Behaviors Questionnaire-Revised, Beck Depression Inventory, Positive and Negative Affectivity Scale, Flourishing Scale, and Satisfaction with Life Scale. RESULTS: The results of Confirmatory Factor Analysis indicated a good fit for a one-dimensional model of the FSII-S, and high reliability (a = .89). FSII-S scores correlated negatively with suicide protective factors, and positively with suicide risk factors. Multi-group analyses showed the invariance of the factor structure of FSII-S across gender and age. CONCLUSIONS: In line with studies in other countries, these findings provide evidence of the validity, reliability, and invariance of the FSII-S as a brief measure of suicidal ideation frequency in Spanish adults.

Trauma and Suicide Risk in College Students: Does Lack of Agency, Lack of Pathways, or Both Add to Further Risk?

The present study sought to examine trauma history and hope as predictors of suicide risk in a sample of 561 college students. Furthermore, authors aimed to understand whether the lack of hope agency and hope pathways contributed to further risk for suicide, above and beyond trauma history. Results suggested that trauma history and hope agency were significant and unique predictors of suicide risk among college students. More specifically, hope agency accounted for additional variance in the prediction model of suicide risk, beyond that accounted for by trauma history. Some implications of the present findings for social work practice are discussed.

Measurement Invariance of the Five Factor Model of Personality: Facet-Level Analyses Among Euro and Asian Americans.

Relative to broad Big Five domains, personality facets provide incremental value in predicting life outcomes. Valid between-group comparisons of means and correlates of facet scores are contingent upon measurement invariance of personality measures. Research on culture and Big Five personality has been largely limited to cross-national comparisons of domains, without assessing measurement invariance across ethnoracial groups within the same country. Using the NEO Inventories, we tested facet-level measurement invariance between Euro (N = 418, 63.2% women, Mage = 18.43) and Asian Americans (N = 429, 56.6% women, Mage = 18.00). Multigroup exploratory factor analysis within a confirmatory factor analysis framework showed partial strong invariance. Assertiveness and activity did not load onto extraversion as strongly for Asian Americans. Self-consciousness showed a stronger cross-loading onto extraversion among Asian Americans than Euro Americans. Achievement striving, competence, warmth, tender-mindedness, and excitement seeking showed noninvariant intercepts across groups. Collectivistic values emphasizing interpersonal harmony and modesty should be considered when examining narrow and broad traits among Asian Americans.

Experiences with microaggressions and discrimination in racially diverse and homogeneously white contexts.

OBJECTIVES: The interaction between one's context and identity may be essential in understanding people's racial experiences. In this study, we examined 2 contexts (racially diverse vs. homogenously White) and measured the experiences of discrimination and microaggressions for monoracial people of color (POC), multiracial individuals, and White individuals. Additionally, we measured experience of microaggressions with a new scale that measured instances of multiracial-specific microaggressions, and the offensiveness of these microaggressions. METHOD AND RESULTS: Through a self-reported survey, monoracial POC, multiracial individuals, and White individuals across the United States reported their experiences with discrimination and microaggressions, and offensiveness of multiracial-specific microaggressions. Overall, monoracial POC and multiracial individuals reported experiencing less discrimination and microaggressions in diverse contexts versus homogenous contexts. White individuals reported the lowest amounts of discrimination and microaggressions, which did not differ across contexts. CONCLUSIONS: Living in a racially diverse context may have positive benefits for racial minorities, and White individuals do not necessarily experience greater instances of discrimination or microaggressions in diverse contexts. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

An examination of eating and thinness expectancies as predictors of eating disturbances in females: evidence for cultural differences between European American and Chinese college students.

PURPOSE: This study sought to examine the utility of eating expectancy, thinness expectancy, and the interactive role of both, in predicting eating disturbances (viz., bulimic symptoms and drive for thinness) in European American and Chinese female college students. METHODS: A sample of 237 European American and 221 Chinese female college students completed measures of eating and thinness expectancies and eating disturbances. RESULTS: Results of hierarchical regression analyses revealed that thinness expectancy significantly predicted increases in both drive for thinness and bulimic symptoms (with these increases being greater for European Americans), whereas eating expectancy predicted increases in bulimic symptoms only. In addition, for European Americans, a significant interaction for bulimic symptoms was found, revealing a synergistic increase in bulimic symptoms for those with both a high thinness expectancy and a high eating expectancy. For Chinese, a significant interaction for drive for thinness was found, demonstrating that for those with a high thinness expectancy, a higher eating expectancy was actually associated with a lower drive for thinness. CONCLUSION: The present findings point to the value of examining for the co-presence of both expectancies in predicting eating disturbances while also highlighting cultural variations in the study of eating pathology. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Descriptive cross-sectional study, level V.

A Preliminary Examination of Negative Life Events and Sexual Assault Victimization as Predictors of Psychological Functioning in Female College Students: Does One Matter More Than the Other?

The present study examined negative life events (NLEs) and sexual assault victimization as predictors of positive and negative psychological functioning in a sample of 151 female college students. Results obtained from conducting regression analyses indicated several notable patterns. NLEs, compared with sexual assault victimization, were a stronger negative predictor of positive functioning based on indices related to subjective well-being (e.g., life satisfaction, positive affect). Alternatively, sexual assault victimization, compared with NLEs, was a stronger positive predictor of negative functioning based on indices related to posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms (e.g., anxiety) and related conditions (e.g., alcohol use). Furthermore, both NLEs and sexual assault victimization were found to be positive predictors of negative functioning based on indices related to suicide risk (e.g., depressive symptoms, suicidal behaviors). Overall, our findings indicate that both NLEs and sexual assault victimization represent important and distinct predictors of psychological functioning in female college students.

Future orientation, depression, suicidality, and interpersonal needs in primary care outpatients.

Based on past research findings with college students, we tested whether perceived burdensomeness and thwarted belongingness represent important mediators of the association between future orientation and suicide risk (namely, depression and suicidality) in primary care patients. We conducted a multiple mediator test in a sample of 97 primary care patients. Our results indicated that perceived burdensomeness and thwarted belongingness accounted for the negative associations present between future orientation and measures of suicide risk. These findings provide evidence for perceived burdensomeness and thwarted belongingness as mechanisms accounting for the association between future orientation and suicide risk in primary care patients.

Relationship between Hope and Quality of Life in Primary Care Patients: Vitality as a Mechanism.

The present study examined the role of vitality as a mediator of the association between dispositional hope and quality of life (QoL) (namely, physical health, psychological health, social relationships, and environment) in a sample of 101 adult primary care patients. Vitality was found to fully mediate the relationship between hope and physical health, social relationships, and environment. In addition, vitality was found to partially mediate the association between hope and psychological health. The present findings are consistent with a model in which vitality represents an important mechanism through which hope affects QoL in adults. Accordingly, these findings point to the importance of fostering both hope and vitality in efforts to promote positive QoL in adults.

Relationship between Future Orientation and Pain Severity in Fibromyalgia Patients: Self-Compassion as a Coping Mechanism.

The present study examined the relationship between future orientation and fibromyalgia-related pain severity in a sample of 287 adults with fibromyalgia. Specifically, authors examined dimensions of self-compassion (for example, self-kindness, isolation, mindfulness) as possible mechanisms through which future orientation might be associated with pain severity. Results of conducting a multiple mediator test with 10,000 bootstraps indicated that the significant negative association between future orientation and pain severity was mediated through one specific self-compassion dimension, namely, isolation. The article concludes with a discussion of the implications of the present findings for working with fibromyalgia patients, specifically the potential value of social workers working with fibromyalgia patients to build future orientation as a resilience factor to combat pain severity. Also discussed is the value of working with patients to develop a sustainable social support system that can disrupt experiences of social isolation and disconnectedness from others, and which appear to contribute to greater pain severity.

Perfectionism and Social Problem Solving as Predictors of Nonsuicidal Self-Injury in Ethnoracially Diverse College Students: Findings Controlling for Concomitant Suicide Risk.

The present study was designed to examine the extent to which perfectionism and social problem solving add to the prediction model of nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI), independent of suicide risk, in a sample of 386 ethnoracially diverse college students. Moreover, the authors were interested in whether social problem solving, beyond perfectionism, would account for additional variance in their prediction model. Results indicated that social problem solving did account for significant variance in the prediction model of NSSI, above and beyond perfectionism. Moreover, on controlling for suicide risk, a possible confound for NSSI behaviors, social problem solving was found to account for an additional 4.0 percent of unique variance in the prediction of NSSI, beyond that accounted for by perfectionism. The present findings have theoretical implications for the literature on perfectionism and social problem solving, specifically in relation to NSSI. In addition, the present findings have practical implications for social workers who work with college students engaging in NSSI behaviors.

Examining Sexual Assault Victimization and Loneliness as Risk Factors Associated With Nonlethal Self-Harm Behaviors in Female College Students: Is It Important to Control for Concomitant Suicidal Behaviors (and Vice Versa)?

The present study examined sexual assault victimization and loneliness as predictors of self-harm behaviors in a sample of 224 female college students. Results from conducting regression analysis indicated that both sexual assault victimization and loneliness were unique and significant predictors of self-harm behaviors. This pattern remained even after controlling for concomitant suicidal behaviors. Interestingly, in a post hoc analysis predicting suicidal behaviors, it was found that loneliness, but not sexual assault victimization, was the only unique and significant predictor after controlling for self-harm behaviors. Some implications of the present findings for understanding self-harm behaviors in female college students and the importance of controlling for suicidal behaviors in studies of self-harm behaviors (and vice versa) are discussed.