Religiosity is a protective factor against self-injurious thoughts and behaviors in Jewish adolescents: findings from a nationally representative survey.

PURPOSE: Few studies have investigated the association between religiosity and self-injurious thoughts and behaviors specifically in adolescents, yielding inconsistent results. To date, no study has examined this relationship in a Jewish adolescent cohort. METHODS: Self-injurious thoughts and behaviors, as well as depression, were assessed in a nationally representative sample of Jewish adolescents (n=620) and their mothers, using the Development and Well-Being Assessment Inventory (DAWBA) structured interview. Degree of religiosity was obtained by a self-report measure. RESULTS: Using multivariate analysis, level of religiosity was inversely associated with self-injurious thoughts and behaviors (Wald χ(2)=3.95, P=0.047), decreasing the likelihood of occurrence by 55% (OR=0.45, 95% CI 0.2-0.99), after adjusting for depression and socio-demographic factors. This model (adjusted R(2)=0.164; likelihood ratio χ(2)=7.59; df=1; P<0.047) was able to correctly classify 95.6% of the patients as belonging either to the high or low risk groups. CONCLUSION: This is the first study demonstrating religiosity to have a direct independent protective effect against self-injurious thoughts and behaviors in Jewish adolescents. This finding has clinical implications regarding risk assessment and suicide prevention. Further research can potentially elucidate the complex relationship between religiosity, self-injury and suicide in this population.

Phospholipid patterns of erythrocytes in schizophrenia: relationships to symptomatology.

The phospholipid composition of red blood cells (RBC) from 32 haloperidol-treated schizophrenic patients, classified according to the positive and negative syndrome scale (PANSS) as showing either predominantly positive or predominantly negative symptoms, was determined and compared with that of normal controls. While the levels of phosphatidylcholine and phosphatidylserine were similar in all three groups, sphingomyelin (SM) and phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) were, respectively, increased and decreased in RBCs of schizophrenic patients. In both patient groups, the SM/PE ratios correlated directly with the PANSS negative symptom scale scores and inversely with the positive symptom scale scores. However, the inverse changes in the contents of SM and PE were much more expressed in the negative group. It is suggested that a main source of that difference is a higher activity of the polyunsaturated acid-selective phospholipase A(2) in the negative syndrome patients than in the positive syndrome and control groups.

Suicidal ideation and suicide attempts among immigrant adolescents from the former Soviet Union to Israel.

OBJECTIVE: A community survey was conducted to examine suicidal ideation and suicide attempts, behavior problems, psychological distress, social support, and adjustment difficulties in a sample of adolescents. METHOD: Four hundred six Russian-born Jewish immigrants to Israel, aged 11 to 18 years, were selected to match the age and sex distribution of the total immigrant adolescent population. Two indigenous samples of Jewish adolescents in Russia (n = 203) and in Israel (n = 104) were matched with immigrants for comparison. Parameters of interest were measured with self-administered questionnaires. RESULTS: The 6-month prevalence rate of suicidal ideation in the immigrant sample (10.9%) was significantly higher than that for Russian controls (3.5%) but not for Israeli natives (8.7%). There were few gender differences in suicidal ideation and suicide attempts. Older adolescents reported suicidal ideation 2 times more frequently than their younger counterparts. Suicide ideators scored significantly higher than nonideators on all scales of psychological distress and behavior problems. They rated higher sources of immigration difficulties concerning language, physical health, personality characteristics, and family problems but had less socioeconomic and intercultural problems of migration and lower social support from the family but not from other sources. CONCLUSIONS: Results clearly support the migration-convergence hypothesis of suicide risk among adolescents.

Suicide ideation among recent immigrants to Israel from the former Soviet Union: an epidemiological survey of prevalence and risk factors.

This paper reports results of a national community survey of self-reported suicide ideation and attempts and their relation to psychological distress, depression, social support, and adjustment difficulties in a sample of recent immigrants from the former Soviet Union (FSU) to Israel. Using a door-to-door sampling procedure, a sample of 788 Russian-born Jewish immigrants, ages 18-74 years, was selected to match the age and sex structure of the total immigrant population. An indigenous sample of Jews in Russia (n = 411) was matched with the immigrants for comparison. Parameters of interest were measured with the Demographic Inventory, Talbieh Brief Distress Inventory, Beck Depression Inventory, and Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support. The 1-month prevalence rate of suicide ideation in the immigrant sample (15.1%) was found to be significantly higher than that in Russian controls (6.6%). A total of 5.5% of immigrants but only 0.5% of controls had made a suicide attempt at some time in their lives. Risk factors for suicide ideation included younger age, living without a spouse, low level of social support, being a physician or teacher, a history of immigration from the Baltic countries or Moscow, or duration of stay in Israel from 2 to 3 years. The strongest risk factors were higher level of psychological distress and symptoms such as depression, hostility, and paranoid ideation. These findings can be used as a point of departure for the development of community-based suicide prevention programs for recent immigrants.

A clinical-psychological approach to suicidal behavior in depression from Moscow.

This contribution strives to familiarize Western readers with the theoretical concept of suicidal behavior which was developed at the Department of Suicidology of Moscow Psychiatric Research Institute and has been in use there for the last two decades. In describing this approach the paper concentrates on what differentiates it from traditional Western management without making value judgments about either approach. Such an account of the concept and its development will hopefully afford the reader an opportunity to arrive at his or her own conclusions regarding its clinical value.