Associations Between Delinquency and Suicidal Behaviors in a Nationally Representative Sample of Adolescents

Suicide was the second leading cause of death for 14–17 years olds in 2002. Prior studies indicate that suicidal behaviors are especially common among juvenile delinquents, yet this association has not been examined in a national sample. The 2003 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System was used to e...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Suicide & life-threatening behavior 2006-02, Vol.36 (1), p.57-64
Main Authors: Thompson, Martie P., Kingree, J. B., Ho, Ching-hua
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescent
Adolescents
Adult and adolescent clinical studies
At Risk Persons
Behavior
Biological and medical sciences
Comparative Analysis
Comparative studies
Control Groups
Correlation
Data Collection
Delinquency
Female
Gender Differences
High School Students
Humans
Intervention
Juvenile Delinquency
Male
Medical sciences
Medical Services
National Surveys
Population Surveillance
Psychological Patterns
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychopathology. Psychiatry
Risk factors
Suicide
Suicides & suicide attempts
Teenagers
United States
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Summary:Suicide was the second leading cause of death for 14–17 years olds in 2002. Prior studies indicate that suicidal behaviors are especially common among juvenile delinquents, yet this association has not been examined in a national sample. The 2003 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System was used to examine associations between suicidal behaviors and delinquency in a nationally representative sample of 14–17 year olds. Results indicated that delinquent adolescents were more likely to have seriously considered suicide (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 5.44), made a suicide plan (AOR = 4.90), attempted suicide (AOR = 10.08), and required medical treatment after attempting suicide (AOR = 14.61) compared to their nondelinquent counterparts. Delinquency was significantly related to suicidal behaviors for boys and girls, but the magnitudes of effects were larger for girls. This finding suggests that delinquent youth, particularly delinquent girls, should be targeted in interventions to reduce suicidal behaviors.
ISSN:0363-0234
1943-278X
DOI:10.1521/suli.2006.36.1.57