Family environment key to suicide prevention in India: Study

Bengaluru: A recent multi-state study indicates that suicide prevention interventions in India should prioritise family environment and address issues like intergenerational communication and conflict.

The study — conducted by researchers from the University of Melbourne (Australia), Nimhans (Bengaluru), the University of Birmingham (United Kingdom), and seven other universities — examined the correlates of suicidal ideation and attempts among over 8,300 college students across nine Indian states, with nearly 95 per cent of participants aged 18-24.

The study explored the "ideation-to-action" pathway to understand the transition from suicidal thoughts (ideation) to attempts.

The cross-sectional survey, conducted between February and September 2019, included questions on demographics, health and social indicators, and mental health.

Researchers used the Life Events Questionnaire to assess 23 major life events, the Patient Health Questionnaire to measure depressive symptoms, the Generalized Anxiety Disorder scale for anxiety, and the AUDIT-C tool to measure alcohol dependence.

They also assessed non-suicidal self-injury in the preceding 12 months.

The findings revealed that over one in 10 (12.3 per cent) of the surveyed population reported suicidal ideation in the preceding 12 months, 5.2 per cent reported a suicide attempt, and 12.2 per cent reported non-suicidal self-injury.

Nearly 27.1 per cent reported exposure to suicidal ideation in others or knew family members or friends who died by suicide. Approximately one-third exhibited moderate or severe depressive symptoms. Among those experiencing suicidal ideation, 34.8 per cent reported a suicide attempt in the preceding 12 months.

The survey identified four significant risk factors associated with increased odds of suicide attempts among those with suicidal ideation: poor quality family relationships, exposure to suicidal ideation in others, cannabis use, and non-suicidal self-injury.

The study reiterated that poor quality family relationships can create environments that increase the risk of both suicidal ideation and attempts.

“Our findings suggest that leveraging social support and drawing on interventions to enhance opportunities to build stronger social support networks may play an important role in the prevention of suicidal ideation among college students in India,” the study stated.

It underscored the importance of interventions targeting family environments to prevent suicides and the need to address how youth experience and react to suicides in their surroundings by providing increased support.