Suicide Ideation and Self-Harm Behaviors in First-Year Dormitory Students at a Public Midwestern University: A Pilot Study

• Published in: Chronic stress (Thousand Oaks, Calif.) Calif.), 2024-01, Vol.8, p.24705470241259939
• Main Authors: Klonoff-Cohen, Hillary Sandra, Cohen, Auroraleigh, Gobin, Robyn L, Polavarapu, Mounika, Allen, Ryan, Reddy, Swetha, Vuyyuru, Chandana
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Self-Harm and Suicide
• ISSN: 2470-5470; 2470-5470
• DOI: 10.1177/24705470241259939

Currently, 1 in 5 college students struggle with suicidal ideation while 7% to 44% engage in nonsuicidal self-injury. Illinois has one of the highest teenage and college student suicide rates in the United States. This pilot study assessed suicide ideation and self-harm behaviors at a public Illinois university. This is the first study to use 5 standardized psychological instruments to investigate these 2 crises in freshmen college students who are all required to reside in dormitories. The main hypothesis was to determine if the independent effects of freshmen students' depression, Five-Factor Model, and Reasons for Living affected the dependent variables, self-harm behaviors and suicide ideation. Forty first-year college dormitory students completed the Beck Depression Inventory-II, Scale of Suicidal Ideation, Five-Factor Model, Inventory of Statements About Self-Injury, and Reasons for Living Scale in person. Participants were 18 to 19 years old, predominantly female (65%), and non-White (62%). Forty percent reported self-harm behaviors and 19% reported suicidal ideation. The top reasons for contemplated suicide attempts included the inability to solve problems (33%) and attention/revenge (28%). Students experienced high levels of anxiety (55%), self-consciousness (43%), and depression (18%). Depression was associated with suicide ideation (β = 0.05, = .006), while neuroticism and openness were associated with self-harm behaviors ( = 3.36, = .02, = 0.48, = .047, respectively). Ninety-five percent reported "responsibility to family" as a Reason for Living. Preliminary evidence necessitates an examination of self-harm and suicide ideation among all freshmen, investigating both risk and protective factors. In the future, a prevention intervention should be implemented campus-wide (and eventually nationwide) for all first-year dormitory students to enhance their mental well-being.