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1975

The Social History Questionnaire in Relation toSuicide Risk PotentialEdward WardEastern Illinois UniversityThis research is a product of the graduate program in Psychology at Eastern Illinois University. Find out moreabout the program.

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Recommended CitationWard, Edward, "The Social History Questionnaire in Relation to Suicide Risk Potential" (1975). Masters Theses. 3561.https://thekeep.eiu.edu/theses/3561

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pdm

The Social History �uestionnaire in -

Relation to Syicide Risk Potential (TITLE)

BY

Edward Ward

THESIS SUBMlmD IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENlS

FOR THE DEGREE OF

Master of Arts IN THE GRADUATE SCHOOL, EASTERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY

CHARLESTON, ILLINOIS

1975 YEAR

I HEREBY RECOMMEND THIS THESIS BE ACCEPTED AS FULFILLING THIS PART OF THE GRADUATE DEGREE CITED ABOVE

.

/-'d-76 DATE

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements •••••• ·• ••••••••••••• � •••••••••••••••••••••••••• 1 Abstract ••••••••• � ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 2

Introduction ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 4

Review of literature ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 5

?t-lethod ••••••••• _ .•••••••••••••••••••••••••••• -• ••••••••••••••••••• 15 Subjects •••••••••••••••••••• • •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 15

Ueasuring Instrument ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 17 _I�

Procedure.•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••17

Statistical Analysis ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 18

Results •••••••••••.•••••••• · •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• _ ••• 19 Discussion •••.•••• ·•· ••••••••••••••••••••• •-� ._ ••••••••••••••••••••• 23

Sununary •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 2 7

.References ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 28

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337142

1

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank Dr. Stackhouse, who assisted with the

organization of this paper, Dr. McGown, who of fered corre�tions in the

methodology and statistical analysis sections , and Dr. Best, who patiently

·.helped with the overall development of this paper .

The existence of this paper is also due to the library personnel ,

who found seemingly misplaced microfilms and j ournals .

Finally, I.would· like to thank my wife, Denese, who gave consolation

and encouragement during the writing of this paper.

Abs tract

The study of suicide is the s tudy of individual s·, each ·or·whor .. ··

can be considered a unique ent ity. However, in the course o f s tudying

, s uicide case histories, some demographic variables seem t o repeat

thems elves as differentiating potential suicides from persons who will

2

never attempt or commi t suicide . The purpose o f this paper is to determi ne 1 ·

which social his tory variables correl at e s igni ficantly with subjects

who have made a definite suici.de attempt or gesture .

The basic question raised by th is thesis was: What factors in a

person's social history correl ate significant ly to an increase d probability

of having made a s uicide attempt o r gesture? The reason for asking

t his ques tion was t hat by f inding t hese factors a clinician could increase

his acumen at detecting potential suicides •

.. --�- ___ Tl!@._ru,".Ob�J!}. inVQll9 _td!:J:L tl-,J_�_ t }le_i;es...sA�..l_O f iruL.t.b$ 11.!&n.:J:f·i��---

demographic variabl es of one's social history which would indicate in creased

pro bability o f having made a suicide attempt or ges t ure . The hypothesi s

advanced was that the findings would be much t he same a s t hose of p�evious

s t udies , which are delineated i n the review of l iterature section .

The des ign of the st udy involved matched s ubject s, with a sui cidal

group of sub jects who had made a suici de ges ture or attemp t , and a control

group cons isting of persons who had no his tory of such an attempt or gesture .

The sub jects were matched on t he basis of sex, age, and marital s tatus.

Each sub ject had completed a Social History Questionnaire (Dest , 1971),

and these forms were analyzed for s ignificant ly differentiating social

history f actors. These fac tors -were f ound to be indicative of an increas ed

pro bability of having made a suicidal gesture or attempt . A previous

-

3

attempt or gesture increases the likelihood of the next at tempt being completed.

A subject who has a large number of the significant variables appl y to him ..... .. .... ___ i-'"

can be considered to be in the high-risk catesory of suicide probability.

4

Suicide research involves the study of people, which in turn involves

the study of idiosyncrasies . However, some demographic variables seem to

differentiate potential suicides .from persons who will not attempt or

co11111it suicide . The purpose of this paper is to determine which social

history variables correlate significantly with subjects who have made a

definite suici4e attempt or gesture .

The U.S. suicide rate is such that another suicide occurs, on the average,

once every twenty minutes (Coleman, 1972). Hafen (1967) states an annual

suicide rate for the U.S. of 23,000, making it one of the top ten causes of

death in the country . ·The "official" rate can be misleading, because

suicidologists have estimated that the acutal number of suicides is from

two to five times the number actually reported (Hafen, 1967).

In addition, Coleman (1972) lists some 2, 000, 000 living Americans as

having made a suicide attempt . An iml'ortant fact about this large number

o_f attemptors, according to various researchers (Batchelor, 1955; Moss &

Hamilton, 1956; Motto, 1965; Pokorny, 1966; Pretzel, 1972) is that any

subsequent attempt is much more likely to be fatal . Tuckman and Youngman

(1963) concluded that persons who had attempted suicide were at_

a greater

risk than were those persons with no history of a suicide attempt .

It thus seems possible that the suicide rate can be reduced by lowering

the risk of suicide among those who have made previous suicide at tempts .

One of the needs of the mental health clinician is to recognize the potential

suicides; the purpose of this study is to determine which social history

variables correlate most significantly with subjects who have made a definite

suicide attempt or gesture. )

5

Review of Literature

Indications of increased suicide risk can be found in a client's social

history. One of these indicators is a previous suicide attempt or gesture.

Resnik (1966), in a study of suicide completors, found that 75% have a

history of a previous suicide attempt or threat. Farberow and Shneidman

(1955), after studying 128 male veteran hospital patients, concluded that

62% had made a previous attempt. Robin, Brooke, and Freeman (1968) studied

92 suicide completors and found an incident of previous self-injury or

poisoning to be significant. Moss and Hamilton (1956) studies a group of

50 suicide attemptors; 11 subsequently committed suicide. Motto (1965)

stated that of 100 suicide attemptors, one a year will ultimately kill

themselves. His article observed that tile rate of suicide for the normal

population is 10. 5 per 100,000, but for previous suicide attemptors the

rate is 1,,000 per 100,000. �fotto (1965) summed up by adding that the ,-:

suicide rate for previous attemptors is 80 to 100 times the rate for normals.

These researchers (Moss & Hamilton, 1956; ?fotto, 1965; Pretzel, 1972;

Robin et al., 1968; Tuckman & Youngman, 1963) have all found that a history

of a previous suicide attempt increases the probability that a subsequent ?

attempt will be fatal. A previous attempt is therefore one of the most

important indicators of increased suicide risk.

An actual attempt is more significant than suicidal ideation or threats,

as evidenced by Pokorny (1966) . The group studied was 615 male veterans who

had received psychiatric counseling due to having made a suicide attempt,

or having had suicidal ideas, or having made a suicide threat. The highest

rate for subsequent completion was for those who had made an attempt, and

the lowest rate was for those who had thought about suicide.

(

6

In addition to a previous suicide attempt, suicide victims have often

had a loss in the family within a short time preceding the act.· Dorpat

and Ripley (1960) foun� that 27% of a group of completors had lost a family

member by death, separation, or divorce within a year of the suicide. Moss

and Hamilton (1956) found in their study that 60% of the suicide cases had

the death of a close person as an important precipitiating factor. Buglass

and McCulloch (1970) observed that male suicide attemptors were likely to

repeat an attempt within three months after the loss of their spouse.• These

studies point out that the time period following the death of a person's "

spouse of a family member is a time.of increased suicide risk.

Another social history variable in the client's history which indicates

of studies support this contention. Ettlinger (1964), in a study of 228

suicide attemptors, of which 17 subsequently committed, found that the later

committers had a significantly higher incidence of irregular homes during

adolescense. Stengal (1967) found the incidence of broken homes to be

significantly higher among suicidal groups. Greer (1964), in a study which

defined parental loss as the loss or absence of parents for one year or

more before the age of fifteen, found 65% of a suicidal group to be from

� broken home, while only 37% of the controls were. Greer (1966), working

with the same population, found the loss of both parents to be four times·

as common among the attempted suicide group as among the controls. This

study found the sex of the lost parent to be significant. Levi, Fales,

Stein, and Sharp (1966), found four times as many early childhood se parations

(under the age of 7) in a suicide attempt group as in the control group.

Dorpat, Jackson, and Ripley (1965) interviewed 121 attemptors and the friends

and relatives of 114 completors. They found the incidence of broken homes to

7

be 50% in the completed suicide group and 63.9% in the attempted suicide

group. In a study of 100 suicide attemptors under the age of 18, Tuckman

and Connon (1962) found that 47% came _from broken homes. Hill (1969) found

that females who lose their father while between the ages of 10 and. 14

stand a fourfold increase in the risk of a depressive illness �rith attempted

suicide in later life. The !Jtudies cited (Btiglasa & McCulloch, 1970;

Dorpat et al., 1965; Ettlinger, 1964; Greer, 1964, 1966; Hill, 1969; Levi

et al. , 1966; Stengal, 196 7; Tuckman & Connon, 1962) have all found a high

incidence of br�ken hotnes in the childhood of both suicide attemptors and

completors.

A criminal record is another social history variable which. indicates

increased suicide risk for a client. In a study of matched suicide attemptors

�and depressives, Weissman, Fox and Kleman (1973) found the attemptors to

have significantly more ctiminal convictions. Ettlinger (1964) observed

that in a sample of 228 suicide attemptors, the 17 who went on to complete

the act had a significantly greater number of criminal convictions. Tucknan

and Connon (1962) studies 100 adolescent suicide attemptors, and found the

rate of delinquency to be 30%. These studies indicate that the presence

of a criminal record in a client's history indicate increased suicide risk.

A history of medical or psychiatric care has also been found to be

common among the suicidal population. Ettlinger (1964), in a study of 228

attemptors, found that those who subsequently committed suicide had a

greater number of psychiatric admissions in their records. Seager and

Flood studied 325 suicides, and found that 20% were physically ill at the

time of the act, and that 23.4% had seen a medical doctor within the

preceding week (Seager and Flood, 1965). Bennett (1967) observed that 75%

of his sample of completed suicides had been to see a medical doctor within

the preceding six months. Robins, Gassner, Kayes, Wilkinson, and Murphy

(1959) noted that of ·'119 completed suicides, 50% had received medical or

psychiatric care within the preceding year, and 98% were clirtically ill

immediately preceding the act. Jones (1965) found that in the six month

period before the suicidal act, the suicidal group had three times the

physical illness as a control group, and for the preceding two years the

suicidal group had 66 times as �ch significant mental illness. It can

therefore be stated that mental and/or physical illness.often occurs in

the period imme�iately preceding the suicidal act.

8

Variables which indicate increased suicide risk are found not only

in the client's history, but also in his behavior. An example is that a

client with a previous suicide attempt will most likely try to repeat the

act immediately following the previous attempt. Buglass and HcCulloch

{1970) observed 511 atteaptors, and found the months immediately following

discharge from a psychiatric hospital after having attempted suicide to

have the highest risk of another attempt, and that the risk declines with

time. Robin Brooke, and Freeman {1968) considered 92 subjects who had

committed suicide after release f�om a psychiatric hospital, and found

40% of the acts to have occurred within three months of the discharge or

last treatment. Pokorny {1966) found the greatest risk to be within two

years of the original attempt, threat, or ideation. In this study, the

suicide risk and rate declined as a function of time, with the rate after

five years being only 12% of the rate within the first three months.

Another aspect of a client's behavior which is useful in determining

risk is that several attempts occur for each actual suicide {Choron, 1967)•

Estimates by experts range from seven to ten attempts for every completion

{Wilkins. 1967), {Dublin, 1967) , (Fabero"1 and Shneidman, 1961). In an

9

attempt to determine if an attempt was serious or not, Humphrey and Segal

(1970) concluded that attemptors of suicide• as opposed to completors, are '·•·· ·�.

far more likely to be female and to use less lethal methods than completors

of suicide.

The most salient aspect of a client's behavior which indicates increased

suicide risk is a statement of intent to commit suicide. The incidence

of communication of intent is given by Resnik (1966) as occurring at least

sixty percent of the time, while Fawcett (1969) stated that fifty to seventy

percent' of tho�e who verbally threaten suicide will make an attempt. Other

researchers (Robins, Gassner, Kayes, Wilkinson, and Murphy, 1959), (Delong

and Robins, 1961) have found similar percentages of communication, with the

statement being made most commonly to the spouse, followed in frequency

by other relatives, friends, job associates, physicians, and others.

As to their work behavior, Weissman, Fox, and Klerman (1973) found

than matched depressives, and Buglass and McCulloch (1970) found that women

who repeated suicide attempts more often had a fair, poor, or bad work

record than those who did not repeat the attempt.

Another behavioral characteristic of the suicidal client· is a background

of drug use and/or alcohol abuse. In the matter of drug use, Buglass and '

HcCulloch (1970) found that women with a diagnosis of drug addiction were

significantly more likely to ;repeat a suicide attempt. Weissman, Fox,

and Klerman (1973) concluded that suicide attcmptors had a more freouent

history of drug use than did depressives. As to alcohol abuse, Rushing

(1968) stated that while in the general population only 4% are alcoholics,

30% of suicide victims were alcoholics. Rushing (1969) also found that

attempts at suicide occur among 7 to 21% of all alcoholics, a rate several

tt ei

10

hundred times that of a normal population. Ettlinger (1964} found the

tendency to use alcohol to excess to be a significant characterhtic of

suicide �ompletors as compared to attemptors. The tendency to use alcohol

and other drugs to exces s is thus a significant behavioral characteristic

of the suicidal person.

In addition to a client's social history and behavioral tendencies.

·- ......

their personality is useful in determining suicide risk. Kamano and Crawford

(1966) state that self-abasement and a low self-regarding attitude are cardiual

characteristics of the suicidal personality.

An important aspect of the suicidal personality is how the potential ·

suicide views death . In this respect, Hafen (1967) found "nearly all suicidal

persons conceive death in terms of a continued existence superior to the

life they wish to leave".

One reason for the aforementioned desire to leave this life is the

-pennmrttty -ctraracterittic· mon 'fTl!l:Jul!ntly S'SlfOt!iatttd"'"vtl:h -wtttde-r-·¢�n-srlon:

By all odds the major cause of suicide, (Shneidman , 1970) depression can

be detected by these personality characteristics: loss of energy, loss of

initiative, an absence of interest in the usual pleasures such as sex and

eating , guilt . feelings , a mood of sadness, low self .... esteem, and a feeling

of hopelessness, social withdrawal, which completes the depression, is

indicated by a loss of interes t in social gatherings and other people

(Hafen, 1967).

Studies which support the ca,ntention that depression is closely allied

with suicide include Minkoff, Bergman, Beck, and Bech (1973), who administered .r

to 68 suicide �ttemptors personality tests which measured the cognitive ,

affective , and motivational, aspects of depression . A highly significant

correlation level occurred between the level of hopelessness and the serf:Jusness

11

of intent . Silver, Bohnert, Beck, and Marcus (1971) administered the Beck

Depression Inventory to 45 attemptors, and found an incidence of depression

of 80%.

In discussing the predominance of depression in the suicidal personality,

a need to know the difference between depressed persons and suicide attemptors l

arises. In light of this, Weissman, Fox, and Klerman (1973) studied 29

attemptors and 29 matched depressives , and found the f ollowing items to

significantly differentiate the two groups: (1) attemptors had made a

greater number of previous suicide attempts, (2) attemptors had a more frequent

history of drug use and criminal convictions, and (3) attemptors had a more

impaired total work record.

Other personality symptoms which indicate an increased suicide risk

are listed· by Hafen (1967) as (1) an inability to maintain warm, interdependent

relationships, (2) marital isolation, (3) a distorted communication of ·

dependency wishes , (4) the rej ection of helpful overtures from others, (5)

psychosis as indicated by the loss of reality , and (6) excessive dependency ,

in which others are expected to make decision•.

With this type of personality, a compounding factor discussed by Hafen

(1967) is that the potential suicide is often unable to expres s and satisfy

needs in a open manner. This causes him to be unable to maintain warm and

found the main cause to be problems of interpersonal relationships . An

example of this inability to maintain relationships is that marital

"'difficulties have often occurred in the suicidal person's life . Simon· 'and

Lumvy (1970) found that of ·40 suicide victims, 60% had serious mat;ital discord ,

18 were separated or divorced, and 5 had received divorce threats. Robins,

12

Schmidt, and O'Neal (1957) concluded from their study that 60% of suicide

attempters \lave a history.of serious marital problems. Buglass and McCulloch

(1970) found that of a group of attempters, those who went on to commit

suicide at a later date had significantly more violent events in their

relationship with their spouse. The results of these studies indicate that

one personality aspect of the suicidal person is an inability to maintain

warin relationships.

In an attempt to determine even more personality factors which are

predominate in the suicidal person, Rosen, Hales, and Simon (1954) administered

the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory to suicide attemptors, )

�uicide ideators, and controls. Uo significant difference was found on

the L, Mf, or Ma scales; the group which thought about suicide scored

significantly higher than controls on the F, Pa, and Sc scales; the ideators

were significantly higher than both other groups on the Si, Pt, and D

scales; the controls were lower than both other groups on the Pd scale.

Another personality inventory, the Potential Suicide Personality Inventory

(Devries, 1966), found the following personality factors indicative of the L

�s_uicidal personality: (1) My future happiness does not look promising,

(2) My future does not look secure, (3) I sometimes fear that I will lose

control over myself, (4) I never feel that I am completely worthless, and

(5) Lately I have not felt like participating in my usual activities.

These two studies help to delineate the suicidal personality.

With the suicidal personality thus delineated, demographic variables

can be viewed. These variables are important due to their objectivity.

Some of the most studied of these variables are age, sex, occupation, and

marital status.

13

Age: In terms of age in relation to suicide risk, a summary.statement

of research findings is that the older the client, the greater risk (Cohen,

Motto, and Seiden, 1966; Misk.imins, Decook, Wilson, and Maley, 1967; Tuck.man

& Youngman, 1968). The highest risk is among those aged 65 and older, but

the largest number of suicides is found in the 40 to 50 age group, due to

its larger size (Dublin, 1963). The modal age of suicides is 42 (Scheidman

& Farberow, 1965), with women"s rates peaking at 35-39, and men's rates

peaking at the age of 65 and older . The suicide rate for those·65 and older

is five times that of teenagers (Pretzel, 1972; Dublin, 1963). Other researchers

who found that the older the client, the greater the risk, include (Schmid

& Arsdol, 1955; Stengel, 1964; Batchelor, 1955).

Although suicide rates rise with the �ge of the client, adolescents

comprise an increasingly risky group. Teicher and Jacobs (1966) found that

for the 15-19 age group in 1950, suicide accounted for 2.5% of the deaths;

by 1962, this percentage had ri.Sen to 4.3%.

Marital Status: Generally, suicide rates are lowest for married couples

who have children, and highest for the divorced (Dublin, 1967; Hafen, 1967;

�-s-�lmrili &·-Arsdol, --1955)-;""-· Marrted}ntts-orrs do-·no-t-· have-as-lti�&"-Bu:ktMI�-- ........__....,..

as non-married persons. The variance _is such that Seager and Flood (1965)

found widowers to have rates six times that of married men, a finding supported

by Rachlis (1970).

Sex: The sex of the client is significant, in that men make far fewer

attempts than women, but have more completions. Hen were found to outnumber

women two to one in one study of completed suicides, while for attempted

suicide the rate was reversed , with twice an many women as men making an

attempt (Schneidman & Farberow, 1965). That women are more c011DD0n among

suicide attemptors is a finding reported by Ianzito (1970) and Segal

and Humphre y (1970), while other studies conclude that men perform more

completed suicides (Dublin, 1965i Seager & Flood, 1965; Segal & Humphrey,

1970). '

Occupation: A general finding was that "white collar" occupations

al\d professions had a lower attempted and completed rate than did "blue

collar" occupations. The highest rates have been found in the unskilled

and laborers line of work (Dublin, 1967; Schmid & Arsdol, 1955), and the

lowest rates have been found among artisans, agricultural laborers, and

clerical and kindred workers (Dublin, 1967 ; Schmid & Arsdol, 1955).

Age, sex, marital status, and occupation are not the only significant

demographic variables. C.eographically, Northern states have a higher rate

than Southern states, and Western states have a much higher rate than

Southern states, with the exception of Virginia and Florida (Lester, 1970).

As to domicile, suicide rates are slightly higher for rural areas, 'dth

female rates rising significantly (Hafen, 1967; Seager & Flood, 1965).

" As to season and month, suicide rates are highest in the spring, particu­

larly April and May. The lowest rates are found in the winter, particularly

December and January (Cerbus, 1970; Hafen, 1967). In addition to the season

and month of the attempt, the day of the t'1eek of the attempt has been studied.

Although Schmid and Arsdol (1955) foufid no significance attached to what

day the attempt occurred, another study of 3,672 suicides found Honday to

have the significantly highest rate, and Saturday the significantly lowest

tate (Zung & Green, 1974) .

Studies have been conducted to dbtermine if a person's month and season

of birth' affect suicide risk. These studies have acheived non-significant

results (Lester, Reeve, and Priebe, 1970; Sanborn & Sanborn, 1974).

15

· College students have a higher r:ate of completed suicide and at tempted

suicide than do non-students o f the same age. Female.a and graduate studentR

are signi ficantly more likely to commit suicide than are males and under­

graduates. The marital status and religion of the student do not affect

the suicide rate. Those who do commit suicide have been found to have a

grade-point-average better than th" 11tµcl�P.t l>oqy iiverage (Seiden, 1966).

In summation of demographic variables as regards suicide risk, the

highest risk is among males of advanced age, who are not married.

Despite the knowledge of what factors sigpif icantly contribute to

increasing a client's suicide potential, an instrument has not yet been.

- constructed that will accurately predict suicide to potential. Suicide

prediction scale s in use today, such as the Revised Suicide Potential

Scale and Potential Suicide Personality Inventory9 misclassi fy over 30%

of nonsuicidals into the suicidal classification (Braucht & Wilson, 1970;

Devries, 1966). The need for an accurate scale to measure suicide potential'

lies in the fact that having made a suicide attempt or gesture increases

the chance o f the next such action being successful (Batchelor, 1955; Motto,

1965; Pokorny, 1966). As there are currently some seven to ten attempts.

for every completed suicide, it is impractical to hospitalize all those

who have attempted suicide. The purpose of this paper is to determine what

social history variables correlate significantly with subjects who have

made a definite suicide attempt or gesture.

Method. Subjects

From a total population pool of 462 patients, 45 �ere found to have

answered "true" to item 164 or 173. This group was designated as the suicidal

group. From the same population pool, 45 subjects were pulled that had

16

answered " fals�" to both items 164 and 173, and matched the suicidal group

mean and standard deviations on the basis of sex, age, length of education,

and marital status. This second group was designated a s the control group.

The subjects for this study were 90 patients who completed the Social

History Questionnaire (SUQ) (Best, 1971) at a sciall mental health clinic

in the Midwest. The sample included 20 males, and 70 females. The mean

age for the males was 21.3, and for the females 23.0. The average education

for the males was 11.7 years, and for the females 11.7 years. Marital

status o f the group was �6 married, 25 single, 9 divorced, 0 widowed, 8

separated, and 2 unknown. As to social class, 1 was upper, 23 were middle, \

52 were working class, and 14 were unknown.

The suicidal group was 45 o f the·afonnentioned patients. The suicidal

subjects were all those who had answered "true" to either item 164 (I have

attempted suicide even though I did not wish to kill myself), or item 173

(I have made at least on serious suicide attempt in the past). The suicidal

group inclu�ed 10 males and 35 females. The mean age for the males was

21.4, and for the females 23.0. The average education for the suicidal males

was 11.6, and for the females 11.6. Marital status o f the suicidal-group

was 22 married, 13 single, 4 divorced,' 0 widowed, 5 separated, and 1 unknown.

As to social class, l was upper, 12 were middle, and 23 were working class,

with 9 unkno'\l.'ll.

The control group consisted of 45 patients, all of whom were dra�m

from the same subject population as the suicidal group. The control group

was those subjects who had answered "false" to both items 164 and 173 of

the SHQ. n1e control group included 10 males and 35 f e1'1ales. The mean

age for the males was 21. 3, and for the females 23.0. The average years

of educatiort for both sexes in the control group was 11.7. f'tarital status

o f the gro up was 26 marri ed , 10 single, 6 divorce d , 0 widowed, 2 separated, I

antl 1 unknown. As to social class, 0 were upper, 11 were middle, 29 were

working class , and-5 were unknown.

Measuring Instrument

The measuring instrument was the Social History Questionnai re (SHl1),

a 393 i tem force d choice , pencil and paper, intake invento ry. There are

three validity scales on the SHQ. In 'addition, the following characteris t ics

are dealt with: enotional disturbances , thought distur b ances , behavioral

dis t urbances , psychosomatic disturbances, marital problems , interpers onal

relations, childhood, education , relationship to mother/fat her , parental

relationships, vocational, and treataent .

Other information which is garnered by the SHQ concerns the client's

name , address, age, and social class .

Proc edur e ( The SHQ.was admini stered as a routine part of the pre treatment admi ssion

procedure. Items 164 and 173 wer e e xamined for all complet ed SHQ forms

at the mental h ealth center. Subjects who answered "true" on -:ltem-164 (I

have attempted suicide even though I did not wish to kill mysel f) or item

173 (I have made at least one serious suicide attemp t in the past ) were

designated as the suicidal group. The control group consis ted o f subjects

who answered "false" to both items 164 and 173.

From a total population pool of 462 patient s, 45 were found to have

answered "t rue" to item 164 or 173. This was designated the suicidal g roup.

From the same population pool , 45 subjects who had answered "false" to both

items 164 and 173 were matched with the suicidal group on the basis of sex,

18

age , length of education, and marita l status . These were the same variab les

used to match the experimental and s uicidal groups of previous kindred studies

(Dean et al . , 196 7 ; Miskimins & Wilsoµ , 1969) • \

S tat is tical Analysis

Responses vere trans ferred to IBM scoring sheets , and s cored by the

counseling and testing center at Eastern Illinois Unive rs ity . Dif ferences

in responses between the two groups were noted . A phi correla tion coef fi� ient

was computed concerning the differences , and from the phi , chi square scc:res

were computed . A determination was made as to wha t items on the SllQ

s ignificantly differentiated between the control and suicidal groups, a t

the . 05 level o f significance and beyond . These signi ficant i tems , which

are viewed as potential indicators of suicidal tendencies , were grouped

under the appropriate SHQ category and were listed in Table 1 . An examinat ion

of the s ignificant social hi story variables was made in order to determine

the characteristics of a subj e ct who has made a suicide attemp t or gesture .

An expe�tancy table , Table 2, was cons tructed . Its purpose was to

infotm a clinic ian as to · the degree of suicide attempt risk presented by

the cl ient ' s social history .

A tab le of cumulative frequencies and percentages delinea ting the test

s cores received by the suicidal and cont rol �roups was cons tructed . This

table , Tab le 3 , indica ted at what point in the co,ntinum a part icular s core

placed .

'flte phi coefficient and the chi:-square tes t were chosen as· the s tat is tical

tes ts in this exploratory s tudy . The phi coef ficient was chos en because

each of the variables is a dichotomy , and two groups are used . The chi-square

was chosen because it is easily computed from the phi coe fficient , and a

s ignificant chi-square is interpreted as showing a relationship between the

two variables .

TABLE 1

I tems o f Signi ficance

Thought Dis turbances· I some time s hear voi ces talking · · ·

'. when_.no one is �th�.re .� . ( J4) a .. Some times I do no t know where I

· am even though I have been there be foI!e . ( 175) a : Some times i t i s hard foil me to remember things . ( 148 ) ·

I believe tha t people do . 11ot want me around anymore . ( 287�

I o ften believ\ things that are no t true . ( 1 6 ,

I am a frai d o f many things even thoueh

. I know there i s no l,..ogical

reason to be a fraid . ( 1 �2 j .J: am o ften confused by the thin�s tha t are happening around me . \ 157'

t Some times I do no t know wha t day , month , o r yea r it i s . ( 166 )8-There are many things wrong wi th my mind . ( )92 )a

f I o ften have s trange ideas tha ta do 1 no t make much sens e to m� . ( 7 ) I . .:·

Leve l o f

. os

• os

.02

. 02

. 0 1

. 01

. 0 1

. 001

l��r=m(��e n::�-h�y a�����-a�.·- :- -· i __ _ .. _ _ _._oQl .. . ..

i else I ge t more and more nervous . i ( 1 39 )a c i ·1

Behavioral I 1

Di s turbance s \ ! be li eve I know wha t my i mental j problemsbare and how they began . r( 8 )a � ( F) r

1 I o f'\en fee·l very lone ly.· even when

my husband (wife ) is wi th me . ( 50 ) I n the past I received treatment for my mental problems a t a mental health clinic . ( 5)) .

. os

. os

.05

e Ph

-. 246 .. .

............. � • .... . · --··- ' 1'· .....

- . 270

(�· - � 2 68

- . 306

- . 317

- . 389

- . JJ8

- . 372

- . 397

- .408

-

- . 242

' - .293

- . 279

I s pend less than the average amount o f time raising any chi l-dretj . C 1 76 ) a .

' (

I � les s than average ! attention to t;lising my childre n . i C 1 94 f-

1 I txiied to kill someone l be f'ore . ( J2 '1 I hav. e never received treat.ment a . fo� a mental probl em be f. ore . · ( 44 1 ( F� ; . In the pa s t I received inidvidual psycho therapy . ( 89 ). a ·

I would like to take me4icine for my mental problems . ( 188 � I haive seriously planned to ki ll someone • ( 2) 'P- ·

I ,

I n the past I re ce ived private out-patient trea tment fQr my mental problems .

·

( 80 '1 1 ·

Although I am no t an alcoholic I could easily be come o�e . (92 Y1

I .

Taking drugs c o u l d become a problem for me i f I am J1.ot

' care ful . ( 128 � �

. 05 - .294

. os - . 278

. 02 - . 290

. 02 .271

. 02 - . J40

. 02 - . J14

. 0 1 - . )1 1

. 0 1 - . JlO

- . j48

- . JOJ

I have threatened to kill . . 00 1 · - ,485 someone . ( 5, . '. 1

-----· ---- ·- - ·- --- ---- -·- -- -�- .-.. .... �- "-· ·-- · '-'-"'-· f .--.. .. _ ___ _

I o f'.ten have thoughts a�out sex .00 1- . - - . - , 377 tha t � make me uncomfo rtalUe . ( 56)il

is no t I often fe el tha t life · ' ·

J wort' liv�ng . ( 1 55 , ·

Emo tional 1. ·:

>

Dis turbance s/ Mos t · o f the time I do any emo tion . ( 4o f

no t fe el · \

Some time s I ge t so nervous tha t I am unable to do athings1 tha t I

t want to do • ( 82 ) · � ;

I have been tense and nervo'jl for a long lo�g time . (-109) ' ' • (: ' <

I I : o ften feel very;. sad afld ' . : depr•ssed . ( 1 1a r · . · ' · :

: . l ' • " ,f • '

\

. ; ' 1 . : : . , ' . ,

. os

. os

. os l I

. qs . · 1

- .469

- . 270

- . 212

- . 28.5 . .. . .

I canno t s e em to get intere s te d in ! anything. ( 4 }l � ; Some ti me s my emo tions �re just the � opposi te o f what they s·hould be .

�. ( 49 ) a · .. · { ; . i! I am tens e and nervous almo st all € the time . ( 7) ) a f.

My emo ti ons o ften change wi thou t I warning . ( 67 ) a

·. ·

. I .. c

I t is very hard for me to kee� my .i emo tions under control . ( SS )

· I Mos t" o f the time I feel sad , un- :I happy ; and gloomy . ( 12'7 )1i �

1 I have been d e pres sed for a long long time . ( 16)1l .

'

I o ften fe el very gull t.Y . ( 181 ) a . . . t

Some ti me s I ge t so angry- tha t I .J almos t lo s e control o f my§Jelf. ( 22 1f Some thing bad happene d to m e and have had a mental probl�m ever

I � f since . ( 37 ) a

·

. 1 I o ften fe el very happy and gay buti then sud d e nly be come bery sad and : depre s s.a d . ( 76 "f �

t Some times I lose a� control o f my - emo tions . ( 94 )

· l � . � ii I feel very gull ty abou t some .J> f !

the things I have dona . ( 1 9o r �

.

Psycho somati Di s turbanc e s My h'�al th has be en poor d�ing

the pas t six months . c s2r . .t � r: 1 •

. \, t Some time s I have 1ifouble breathi ng . ( 1 06 )

\ t � �

My skin is s e nsi tive and I o ften f. break ou t in hive s . ( 1 51 ) a i

I f I o ften feel so tired that i t is almost impossible for me to do anything.. ( 187 )a . . .

. 02

. 02

. 02

. 0 1

. 01

. 00 1

. 001

. 00 1

. 0 01

. os

. os

. os

.05

I ' I I

• !

- . 262

- . )19

- . J04

- . )46

- . )25

- . ;64

- . )48

- . JSS

- .4)4

- . 390

>

l have abou t the same amourut o f o .. f e

.

ner�. . -tha t I always .had . � 206) a ( F)11' JI

Interperson-al · Relations I wou l d much rather be alone than

�pend time with other people . ( 6 ) I usua l ly beliel:{e ·anythi6g anyone tells

e·me . ( 27 ) '

I am pften. j ealous o f o t�er peopl� , ( )J ) ·

I t has always been hard forame to talk to o ther people . ( 96 ) I usually try toacomfort ) everyone .· ( 1 35)

I o ftan criti cize o ther people . ( 1)8 ) I �m o ften angry wi th o thers and Ialet them know abou t i t . ( 147 ) .

. >

I am .too generou s where o ther people are concerned . ( 1.5J)a

i

I ge t': alo ng well wi th th� · o t�e r b members o f my fami ly . ( J J2 ) ( F) I get along well wi �h thea o thsr people in a group . ( J68 ) . C F) I have a s much sel f-�nf�dsnce a s mo s t people . ( 57 ) ( �) ·

I am a friendly person . ( 6J )a ( F)b I o ften fe e� that I am jtis t no good . ( 1 14 ) �

People d o things tha t ma�e me -_ angry, enough to kill or seriously injure them . ( 165 )a ;

I am •lmo s t a�ays ashamed o f mys e l f . ( 12) )

Re la tionshiJ>i wi th Parents4 I never knew whether my mo ther

I. w. ould puni sh me or just i.· gl1.gJ"e

the bad thing� I did . ( 294r ' ·My mother ne�ect9{1 me when I ·

J was 11 ttle . ( 249 ) .

. os

. 05

. os

. os

. 05

. os

.os

f .241 .

. � ; � : . ii - . 280 � I i - . 241

l r 1 ! ., t !

l

- . 245

- . 222

- . 2 39

: - . 226 i.

. o s i - . 268 f

. o s

. os

. os

. 02

� 0 li • 1 t

. 001 J

- . 2 1 7

• • 248

. 256

. 284

. 288

- . 354

- . )06

- . )88

. 02 I - . oeo �

•. 01 - . )09

Vo ca tional and other Informa tion I be�ieve I iould enjoy dangerous

work� ( JlO ) . os - . 262

Childhood

I

I am very proud o f the many things I hav1 acc�mplished in the past . ( )89 ) ( F) . I would l ike · to be a daredevi l ·

and do all kinds o f dangerous things . ( J14 )& I d i d no t like · school .

. 02

� �

I . 01 I t . os I � e " ;

... . 31 1

- . J80

- . 22 1 - . 297 When I was little I often set �1 .

05 . I � · fires just for the '' fun" o f i t ,

· ·

r z�;::��;�;�.�1i�w�!�;r:� :(�7o )r-

: 0�-- 1�

���8 � . I

In school I liked ma�h and ,·0 1 l . JOO

science ,. ( 2J9)a ( F) . 1 In school I made good ·�des . , 0 1 I , )69 l ( mostly A ' s and B' s ) , (248 )a ( F)b �

I often skipped school . ( 284 )a · · L__ I 0 1 j - I J 3 s

a i tem number in SHQ bAnswere d in direction of false by suicidal · group

' . \ I

. """ ' • \

--- ----·- • " .

I

TABLE 2

\umbe r re c e i vi ng ra ch s e e r� I Te s t J � e r c � nt re c e i v i nf e � c n c c a re S c o r" s . . .. . . _ ' ·-·�· �---

Su i c i d a l - c.,ntr" 1 5ui c i da l - Co ntro l 55- 7 7.

4 52 - 54 100 4 49-51 1 00 4 46-48 1 0 0

I g 4 J�45 100 2 . 40-42 80 20

7 1 · 37-39 88 1 2 2 2 J4-J6 so 50 2 • 2 3 1 - 3 J 50 50 1 r 8 28-JO 1 1 89 2 5 2 5-27 28 72 ,· .

2 4 22-24 )) 67 2 2 · 19-2 1 50 50 1 5 1 6- 18 1 6 84 2 2 l J-1 .5 so .50

4 10-12 100 ' 1 4 7-9 . 20 80

) 4-6 100 . 1 1-) 100

I i

fable )

Cumul1'tive frequencies and percentages

_1,;on ... -v.1 • roun I :a:eR i: flcn raa• � · • 1 c • na -.�-u U u. " _Cl' CP 17-SS C.F CP .54 '�S 100 - SJ 4) 95 52 42 92 . . . St 41 90 �o )9 8 6

,J )8 84 - 47 )6 19 46 )4 15 • t? )) 13 )2 10

4) )1 � 42 29 41 27 59 4.S 100 40 2) 51 4) 95 )9 20 44 )8 17 37 )7 16 . 35 42 92 )6 . . ' tl . ))

41 90 M )1 j )) 1) . 29 )9 86 )2 ·- 12 26

)1 )8 8 ) )0 1 1 24 )6 19 29 )1 �� 28 29 27 27 60 26 10 22 26 51 �l 9 20 25 SS 24 SJ 2) 8 18 22 48 22 7 15 20 44 21

{:::

20 6 1)

18 . 19 t 1 1 40 " 18 9 . 17 37 17 15 )) 16 1) 29 1 5 14 ' x 1 ) 2

12 26 12 1 1 22 11· 9 . 20 10 1 . 1 S 9 6 1 ) 8 1 2 l 1 1 1 9 6

l •

2 4 1 2 ' 2 . 1 -

The fo rmula for the phi coef ficient was taken from Bruning and Kintz

( 1968) , and was as follows :

phi• AD-BC �(A+B) (C+D) (A+�) (B+D)

19

The formula for the chi-square was taken from Bruning and Kintz ( 1968) ,

and was as follows :

x2• N (AD-BC) 2 �(A+B) (C+D) (A+c) (n+D)

The numb ers represented by the letters A , B ,C , and D come frotn a I

contingency table , as follows :

Suicidal group

J��-A�·�+-�-B�--t Control group C D

I True False

' Items were tested at the . OS , . oz , . 01 , and . 001 l evel o f s ignificance .

This made it possible to give more weight to those items where dif ferences

between groups were greater and les s weight to items where d i f ferences between · · - .... �- ·� ' -"'-� -.. ---- · - -- -�- .. , ._. , ... ....__ .. -.;. .... ,_ -- ----

groups were smaller .

Results

Of the items on the SHQ , 76 proved significant at or be:Y'ond the . OS

level . Thes e items were grouped intQ the appropriate SHQ cate&ories . The

categories were : emot ional dis turharices , thought disturb ances , behavioral

disturbances , psychosomatic dis turbances , interpersonal relations , childhood ,

educat ion , relationship with parents , and vocational .

Of the s ignificant items , which were lis ted in Table 1 , s ixt een are in

the category pf behavioral disturbances . At the . OS level o f s ignif icance ,

the suicidal subj ects indicated that they spend less than the average time

and give less than the average attenUon to the raising o f their child ren

(items 176 , 194) . The suicidal subjects also indicated at the . OS level o f

20

significance behavioral disturbances such as having received previous

treatment a t a mental health clinic (item 53) , feeling lonely even when . {--

the spouse is present ( item 50) , and not knowing vhat their men tal problems

are or how they began (item 8) . At the . 02 level o f significance, the

suicidal subj ects reported , they had received treatment for a menta l problem

before ( i tem 44) , including individual psychotherapy ( item 89) . The

suicidal group desired to take medic ine for their mental problem (item 188) ,

and have attempted murder a t some point in the past ( item 32) . The

behavioral disturbances reported by the suicidal subj ects which were signif-

icant at the . 0 1 level were a poten tia l prob lem with alcohol (item 92) and

drugs (item 128) , a his tory o f p rivate out-patient treatment for a mental

,.,..,,....,. ..... *-''" •" . - �'"" -·"' .•• ....-.. , - - � -····· ...... ,.. .... . ,,_ .,,_ , ... - •. -� ... . .. . .. • .. -... �-� . ........... .............. problem (item 80) , and having planned a murder ( item 23) . At the . 001 level

of sign ificance, the suic idal group had behavioral disturbances o f having

threatened murder (item 5) , having thoughts about sex that make them

uncomfortable (item 56) , and feeling often that life is no t worth living

(item 155) .

In the category o f emotional disturbances, seventeen items.

were s ign if:f:-

cant at the . 05 level of sign ificance or beyond. At the . 05 1.evel , the

suicidal subjects were found to o f ten not feel any emotion (item 40) , and

of ten feeling sad and depressed (item 1 18) . At this level , the su icidal

subjects reported pervasive and sometimes incapacitating nervousnes s ( items

109 , 82) . Emotional disturbances repor ted by the suic ida l subjects which

were at the . 02 level o f significance were a prevalen t feeling of tension

and nervousne ss (item 73) , an inability to become interested in anythin g

( item 4) , and having inappropr iate emotions (item 49) . At the . 01 leve l

of significance, the suicidal group reported d ifficulty in controlling their

emo tions (item 85) , and that their emotion s often change without wa rning

2 1

( item 67) . The suicidal group was found to have been depressed for a long

t ime ( item 163) , and to o ften feel sad and gloomy (item 1 2 7 ) . Also at the

. 0 1 level , suicidal subj ects indicated feeling guilty frequently ( item 181) .

At the . 00 1 level o f significance , the suicidal subj ects stated they o ften

have emotion changes from insouciance to depression ( item 76) , and that

they sometimes become so angry they almost lose control of themselves

( item 22) . They further reported that they sometimes do lose contro l o f

their emotions ( item 94) , and feel very guilty about some things they have

done (item 190). Suicidal subjects also reported at the . 00 1 level o f s ignif­

icance that something bad had happened to them , and that they had had a

mental problem ever s ince ( item 37) .

In the category o f thought disturbances , suicidal subj ects were found

at the . 05 leve1 to have had auditory hallucinations ( iteM 34) , and to not

know where they are even though they have been there . be fore ( item 175) .

At the . 02 level , the suicidal group stated they had impaired memory (item

148) , and'· a belief they were not wanted around anymore (i tem 287 ) . Items

at the . 0 1 level of signi ficance as reported by the suicidal subj ects were

offert blrirtg e<tnfUsed· (itenr-lS-1) , md sometimes- not knowint;" -wh'at · da<r; month·,-�

or year it is (item 166) . Also at the . O l level , the suicidal subj ects

reported often bel ieving things which are not true (item 16) , being

illogically afraid of some things (item 1 12) , and having many things wrong

with their mind. (item 392) . Thought dis turbance \ items at the . 00 1 level

of s ignif icance concerning the suicidal group uas that they have strange

ideas which do no t make much sense to them (item 7) , and a compulsion to

do certain things (item 139) .

22

In the category o f psychosomatic dis turbances , the suicidal sub1 ects

indicated at the . 05 level o f s ignificance poor heal th and reoccuring hives

( item 1 5 1 ) . Also at this level , the suicidal group· reported having leRs

energy than in the pas t (i tem 206) , oft'n feeling tired and lis tless ( item

1 7 8) , and often being so t ired that effort was dif ficult ( item 187) .

Psychosomatic dis turbances items were not s ignificant at other levels o f

sicnificance .

In the category of interpersonal relations , suicidal subj ects reported

at the . 05 level of s ignificane that they do not get along well with other

members of their family (item 332) or other members of a group (item 368) .

Also , they were too generous with others (item 153) , and usually try to

comfort others ( item 1 35) . Other items significant at the . 05 level as

indicated by the suicidal group were a desire to be alone (item 6) , a

difficulty in talking with others (item 96) , often being jealous (item 33) ,

usually- -believing anyt:hing· - ·anyone--tells - them {item a+),. often erit4-&i-z4ag-- . - ....

I other people (item 138) , and o ften being angry with others and expressing

that anger ( item 147 ) . At the . 02 level of s ignificance , the suicidal group

. indicated a lack of self-confidence ( item �7) , and that they are not friendly ·

( item 6 3) . Items s ignificant at the . 0 1 level for the suicidal group were (

they o ften felt as if they were no good ( item 1 14) , and that people somet�mes

do thi11gs which arouse enough anger to cause a murder (item 165) . The . ,-;::

suicidal group reported at the . 00 1 level a chronic feeling of shame (item 123) .

In the category of relationship with parents , the suicidal group

reported at the . 02 level of signi ficance that they did not know as a child

whether or not they would be punished for the bad things they d:ld ( item 294) ,

and they were neglected by their mother (item 249) . No other items in this

categoFY were significant .

2 3

In the vocational category , the suicidal sub_j ects indicated a t the

. 05 le'\tel of s ignificance that they would enj oy dangerous work ( item 3 10) .

At the . 02 level , a lack o f p ride in past accompliShments was shown (item

389) , and at the . 0 1 level a desire t.o be a daredevil was stated ( item 3 14 ) .

The SUQ items in the category o f childhood found that the suicidal

subj ects did not like school (item 22 1 ) , and often set fires for the fun

of it (item 306) , with both i tems being at the . 05 level of s igni f icance .

At the ' . 02 level , nightmares and bad dreams were reported during childhood

(item 270) . S ignificant items at the . 01 level found that the suicidal group

disliked math and s cience in school (item 239) , did not make good r,rades

(item 248) , and often skipped schoo l ( item 284) .

To obtain a more unified repres entation of the s cores for suicidal

and control sub j ects a computat ion of a frequency distribution of SHQ s cores

and a distribution of, percentages for the two criterion groups was made .

This data is prese11.ted in T�ble 3 .

Using the data in Table 3 an expectancy table was cons tructed . The

expectancy t able is presented in Table 2 . Cutting s cores 't-tere es tab l ished

by us ing the expectancy table . This t able showed that the fourth highe s t

scoring individual in the suicidal group answered 52 of the items a s "true" .

Therefore , the top 9'; o f the suici<lal subjects scored at 52 or more . This

established 52 as the cut off score for suicidal subj e c t s in the upper. 9%

o f the ent ire suicidal group .

Discus s ion.

These f indings s trengthen the resul ts published by previous re searchers • .

An exampl e is that lilost researchers (Buglass & HcCulloch , 1970 ; Rushing , '

1967 , 196 8 ; Weissman et al. , 1973) have found alcohol /drug abuse to be a

tendency among suicide attemp tors ; thi9 is sup1,o rted h•1 i t ems 9 2 and 1 2 8

being significant .

Other research which the present s tudy supports include those which ; have found that social withdrawal and the !�ability to maintain warm

relationships are representative o f the suicidal person (Hafen , 1 9 6 7 ;

Schneidman , 1970) . Their conclusions 'were mirrored in the s i gnifi cance

of items 6 , 96 , 332 , 368 , and 63 . Hafen ( 1967 ) s tated that the depress ion

which accompanies a suicide attempt ia recognizable by a loss of ene rgy ,

24

as shown by the suicidal group in items 1 78 , 187 , and 206 . Low s el f-es teem

has been · shown to be an indicator o f suicidal inclination (Hafen , 1 9 67) ,

and was reported by the suicidal group in i tems 5 7 , 6 3 , 2 87 , 389 , 1 14 , and

123 . The suicidal group also indi cated a feel ing o f hopelessnes s ( i tem

1 55) , and an absence of interes t in the usual pleasures ( item 4 ) , which

according to Hafen (1967) is characteris tic o f the depres s ion whi ch is

found among suicides .

Poor health and p revious treatment for mental problems has been found

to be a characteris t ic of suicides (Buglass & McCulloch , 1 9 7 0 ; E t t l inger ,

1964 ; Jones , 1965 ; Seager & Flood , 1 9 6 5 ) . This was also found to be a

s ignificant difference in the predicted direction , as evidenced by items

52 , 53 , 44 , 80 , and 89 .

T.he presence of mental disorder has been found to be a variable

posit ively correlated with high suicide rates (Stengal , 1964 ) . Items 34 ,

39 2 , and 7 support this finding .

Depress ion has been found to be a sal ient personali ty characteris t ic

of suicidal persons (Dean et al . , 1 9 6 7 ; Hafen , 1 9 6 7 ; Shneidman , 1970 ;

Silver et al . , 19 7 1 ) . This was also true in the suicidal persons of this

study , as seen in items 1 18 , 1 2 7 , 163 , and 155 .

The PSPI (Deries , 1966) found suicidal subj ects had reported feeling

worthle&S ; this reflected in items 114 and 389 . In the s ame s tudy , suicidal

subj �cts indicated a l ack o f interes t in their usual act ivi ties ; this is

mi rrored in this study in items 187 and 4 .

Tuckman and Youngman ( 1968) found the exis tence o f a nervous disorder

to be indicative of suicides . Thi s is reflected in thi s s tudy in items

73 , 82 , . and 109 all being significant.

in the predicted direction .

Failure to Replicate

Res earchers (Tuckm:an & Connon , 1962 ; Weissman et al . , 1973) have found

suicide attemptors to have a greater number o f criminal arres ts in their

social history . However , in this exploratory s tudy , items deal ing with

an arrest record or mul tiple arres t record were no t s ignificant ( item 20

and 29) .

The presence of marital p roblems have been reported as being preval ent

in the social history o f suicide attemp tors (Robins e t al . , 1957) . The

items whi ch deal wi th this in the SHQ . (68 , 7 7 ) were no t s ignificant in

dif feren tia t ing the suicidal and control groups .

The loss o f parents during childhood has b een found to be ind icative

o f suicide at temp tors (Dorpat et al . , 1965 ; Levi et al . , 1966 , Tucl�man &

Connon 1962) . The items in the SHQ which deal with the loss o f parents

during childhood due to death or divo rce were no t sign i f i can t ( i t ems 32 7 ,

388 , 334 , . 34 3 , 36 1 , and 370) .

The primary reason for the lack o f repl ication in th is s tudy is that

previous - s tudies us ed no rmals for a contro l group . This s tudy used o ther

pat ien ts from a mental heal th clinic fo r contro l s . Ano ther reas on is tha t

the total numb er o f subj ects in this s tudy was quite stiall in comparison

with other s tudies .

25

Li1T1itation&'

The limitations of this ex;ploratory study include the small nun1ber

of subj ects in each of the groups ; 45 � This could have allowed some

skewing of the social history variables being measured . In addi tion

26

to the smallness of the groups , · all the subj ects were from the s ame

general locale . This could prej udice the resul ts somewhat due to reg !onal

environmental influences .

Further limitations include the lack o f cros s..:.validation , due to the

small number of total subj ects . Also , no comparison was made as to the

results by the sex of the subj ects .

Sugges tions for Further Research

This exploratory study needs to be cross-validated , preferably with

� large number of subj ects . The items which did prove to be significant

should be combined with other suicide research scales in order to improve

its validity .

An attempt to replicate the findings presented in this study should

be attempted with us ing normals rather than mental health clients in the

control group . This would allow for mc>re widespread general use of the

findings .

Finally , due to experiment-wise error rate , this study needs to be

replicated to determine which items were significant by chance .

2 7

Summary

The purpos e of thi s exploratory study was to find social his tory

factors in the background o f clients at a men tal health center whi ch would

s ignificantly different iate those who had attempted suic ide or rnade a suicidal

ges ture , from those who had never done so . An experimental design using

matched groups was used , and data was taken from the SHQ form which each

s ub j e c t had completed . From this form , 76 social history variables were

found to significantly differentiate a group of 45 control s from a group

of 45 subj ects who had made a suicidal gesture or at temp t . An expectancy

table was devised , which indicated that a cl ient who s cores 52 or more o f

the s ignificant variables a s "true" p laces himsel f i n the top 10% o f the

suicidal group . This would lead a clinician to infer that the client is

a higher suicide risk than normal .

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