In prospective study of 1,046 male medical students, those who later committed suicide (n=13) showed heightened sensitivity in stressful situations as assessed by Habits of Nervous Tension Questionnaire. Revealed two items as strongest suicide predictors: irritability and urinary frequency. No other risk factors for suicide emerged from family…

Addresses sharp upswing in suicide rates in Italy between 1969 and 1989. Notes that northern regions had highest suicide rate; older adults had highest suicide risk. Results of one Italian center are reported, showing parasuicide rates to be higher for females than for males, whereas age group at highest risk is seen to be young women. (Author/NB)

Compared completed suicides among U.S. Navy enlisted personnel from 1974-85 to suicides in U.S. general population and in U.S. Army. Navy suicide rate, lowest of three groups, increased between 1976 and 1983, in contrast to national and Army rates. Young white males in apprentice/recruit and blue-collar occupations had highest rates of suicide in…

Asserts that school counselors can play vital role in the prevention of adolescent suicide. Lists warning signs of suicide risk and characteristics of at-risk students. Presents set of guidelines for helping potential suicide victims. Sees key to teenage suicide prevention to be communication skills. Identifies components for suicide prevention…

Describes development and evaluation of three-hour multimedia community education program on depression and suicide in later life. Designed for families, older adults, and service providers, program provides information and teaches skills to recognize and respond to depression and suicidal behavior in elderly. Compared with controls, participants…

Following massacre of 14 women at Ecole Polytechnique in 1989, compared content of 690 condolence messages written by public at 2 French universities in Quebec. Results showed that event did not trigger homogeneous social reaction but different reactions according to sex and university, suggesting that social investment factors play role in…

Investigated dress and body markings of 100 hospitalized and never-hospitalized adolescent psychiatric patients using in-depth interviews. Found that hospitalized patients had higher incidence of self-scarring, but other individual expressions of appearance did not differentiate two groups. Suggests that dress and appearance observations,…

The article describes the implementation of Immediate Strategic Intervention, a counseling strategy which utilizes trained adolescent female friends to help during the first 24 hours of an emotional crisis (e.g., potential suicide). Middle school adolescents can be taught basic psychological concepts and utilize them in supporting friends and…

Parents whose learning-disabled son committed suicide after being suspended (without notice) sued the school district for violating the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and their 14th Amendment due-process rights. They won summary judgment on the IDEA claim, but lost the school liability claim. The case will be retried. (MLH)

Every day, 160,000 children stay home from school because they are afraid of being bullied. Bullying is an unacknowledged crime of violence; adults are unaware of the problem's prevalence. The best anti-bullying programs are comprehensive and involve everyone in the school and community. A sidebar lists resources. (MLH)

Surveys of high school health educators nationwide examined perceived self-efficacy in identifying adolescents at risk for suicide. Only 9% believed they could recognize a student at risk for suicide. Most teachers considered it their role to recognize students at risk and believed that if they did recognize such students, it would reduce the…

Compares assessment results of inpatients with alcoholism who have made a serious suicide attempt and a matched sample of inpatients with alcoholism who have no history of suicide attempts. Discriminant function analysis reveals that depression, social hopelessness, and socially prescribed perfectionism are unique discriminators of suicide groups.…

Historical and recent social changes and the roles of women and men in New Zealand are examined. Epidemiological trends and suicide rates are compared cross-nationally. Social and economic changes, Maori cultural perspectives, and the problem of negotiating ethnic identity formation are used to explain high suicide rates. (EMK)

The pragmatic question of assessing a client's situation with regard to rational suicide is raised. A review of the nine criteria for a diagnosis of clinical depression is suggested as a good way to explore the possibility of clinical depression in a terminally ill person who is considering suicide. (Author/EMK)

Examines the reliability and validity of the Suicidal Ideation Questionnaire-Junior (SIQ-JR) as an instrument for identifying and assessing current suicidal ideation in a sample of 91 children and adolescents. Psychometric results showed that the internal consistency reliability coefficient and the test-retest reliability coefficient of the SIQ-JR…