NCJ Number
218348
Journal
Journal of Adolescence Volume: 30 Issue: 2 Dated: April 2007 Pages: 283-296
Date Published
April 2007
Length
14 pages
Annotation
This study examined the impact of coping strategies employed by homeless youth upon suicidal ideation, suicide attempts on the streets, and feeling trapped or helpless.
Abstract
The analyses indicated that the pattern of relationships between coping and suicidality remained significant controlling for abusive past, attesting to the importance of coping strategies as they impact risk. The hypothesis that, for females, seeking social support would be of greater significance in ameliorating risk was not supported to a greater degree in their coping efforts. The strongest hypothesized association was found in the relationship between drug and alcohol use as a way of coping and suicidal ideation, feeling trapped, and attempts for both males and females. The use of anger as coping was also examined in the study and proved to be linked to greater levels of trapped experience for both males and females. In recent years, homeless youth have become the focus of research in both physical and mental health areas, as well as the examination of risk factors, concentrating primarily on suicidality. This study, consisting of 208 participants, analyzed the impact of coping strategies upon suicide risk. There were two primary goals of the study: (1) to examine the relationship between coping strategies and suicidality among homeless youth and (2) to examine how coping strategies that had emerged in the past were linked to suicidality in a confirmatory, quantitative approach. Tables and references