Symptoms of Anxiety and Depression and Suicidal Behavior in College Students: Conditional Indirect Effects of Non-Suicidal Self-Injury and Self-Compassion

Young adults of college age are at particular risk for psychopathology, non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) and consequent suicidal behavior, perhaps in a continuum of increasing severity. However, not all persons who experience psychopathological symptoms, or who self-harm, go on to engage in suicidal behavior, perhaps due to protective factors such as self-compassion that buffer this progression. We examined the mediating effect of NSSI on the relation between anxiety/depressive symptoms and suicide risk, and the moderating role of self-compassion on these linkages. Our collegiate sample (N=338) completed: Beck Depression Inventory, Beck Anxiety Inventory, Self-Harm Inventory, Suicidal Behavior Questionnaire-Revised, and the Self-Compassion Scale. Students with greater psychopathology reported more engagement in NSSI and, consequently, more suicide risk; self-compassion weakened the psychopathology-NSSI linkage. Therapeutically addressing risk factors for suicidal behavior (e.g., psychopathology, NSSI), and promoting self-compassion, may halt progression from symptomology to self-harm, thereby ultimately reducing suicide risk in college students

Preferences in Information Processing, Marginalized Identity, and Non-Monogamy: Understanding Factors in Suicide-Related Behavior among Members of the Alternative Sexuality Community

Suicide-related behavior (SRB) is a mental health disparity experienced by the alternative sexuality community. We assessed mental health, relationship orientation, marginalized identities (i.e., sexual orientation minority, gender minority, racial minority, ethnic minority, and lower education), and preferences in information processing (PIP) as factors differentiating lifetime SRB groups. An online cross-sectional survey study was conducted in 2018. Members of the National Coalition for Sexual Freedom (NCSF; n = 334) took part. Bivariate analyses identified the following SRB risk factors: female and transgender/gender non-binary identity, sexual orientation minority identity, lower education, suicide attempt/death exposure, Need for Affect (NFA) Avoidance, depression, and anxiety. Monogamous relationship orientation was a protective factor. Multi-nomial regression revealed the following: (1) monogamous relationship orientation was a protective factor for suicidal ideation and attempt; (2) lower education was a risk factor for suicide attempt; (3) anxiety was a risk factor for suicide attempt; and (4) depression was a risk factor for suicidal ideation. A two-way interaction showed that elevated NFA Approach buffered the negative impacts of depression. Relationship orientation, several marginalized identities (i.e., based on gender, sexual orientation, and educational level), and PIP all contributed uniquely to SRB. Further study is necessary to understand the role of relationship orientation with suicide. Health education and suicide prevention efforts with NCSF should be tailored to account for marginalized identity, mental health, and NFA factors

Improving health-related quality of life and reducing suicide in primary care: Can social problem–solving abilities help?

Problem-solving deficits and poor health–related quality of life are associated with suicide risk; yet, little is known about the interrelations between these variables. In 220 primary care patients, we examined the potential mediating role of physical and mental health–related quality of life on the relation between social problem–solving ability and suicidal behavior. Participants completed the Suicidal Behaviors Questionnaire-Revised, Social Problem Solving Inventory-Revised, and Short-Form 36 Health Survey. Utilizing bootstrapped mediation, our hypotheses were partially supported; mediating effects were found for mental health–related quality of life on the relation between social problem-solving and suicidal behavior. Physical health–related quality of life was not a significant mediator. Greater social problem–solving ability is associated with better mental health–related quality of life and, in turn, to less suicidal behavior. Interventions promoting social problem–solving ability may increase quality of life and reduce suicide risk in primary care patients

Exploring the Moderated Mediation of Student Demographics and Teacher Turnover on Teacher Working Conditions Effect on Student Achievement in North Carolina

Teacher working conditions, teacher turnover, and student achievement are examined from North Carolina. For over 10 years, teacher working conditions have been used as a policy tool to better understand how these conditions are linked to school performance and teacher retention. Previous studies have examined working conditions and achievement; however, this study used a moderated mediation model to examine the when and how causal relationships of these measures. The purpose of the paper is to provide policymakers and educational leaders relevant information about the power of teacher working conditions to influence teacher turnover and student achievement, controlling for student characteristics. The results of the study show (a) current year teacher working conditions have direct effects on teacher turnover and on student performance, (b) current or previous year teacher turnover have no direct effects on student performance, and (c) teacher turnover mediates teacher working conditions on student achievement

Asthma disparities in the LGBTQ+ community: Are sexual and gender minorities of color particularly vulnerable?

Purpose: The current study explored how sexual orientation and gender identity interact with race/ethnicity to predict self-reported lifetime and current diagnosis of asthma. Method: Using the 2021 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) survey, we conducted logistic regression analyses, weighted for complex samples, stratified by sexual orientation and gender identity and controlling for race/ethnicity, age, smoking, population density, and body mass index (BMI). Results: Analyses showed significantly higher adjusted odds of lifetime asthma among sexual minority men (gay: AOR = 1.52 [1.21, 1.92]; bisexual: AOR = 1.31 [1.03, 1.65]), sexual minority women (gay/lesbian: AOR = 1.64 [1.21, 2.24]; bisexual: AOR = 1.67 [1.41, 1.98]; other minority sexual orientation: AOR = 1.37 [1.07, 1.75]), and transgender individuals (transgender men: AOR = 2.84 [1.38, 5.81]; gender nonconforming: AOR = 2.13 [1.30, 3.46]), and higher odds of current asthma among sexual minority men (bisexual: AOR = 1.57 [1.01, 2.43]; other minority sexual orientation: AOR = 1.89 [1.04, 3.44]). Sexual minority men of color (AOR = 1.92 [1.07, 3.46]) had significantly higher adjusted odds of current asthma, whereas transgender individuals of color (AOR = .19 [.06, .67]) were significantly less likely to currently have asthma. Conclusions: Sexual minority men of color might be particularly vulnerable to chronic asthma, though future research should examine asthma risks of sexual and gender minorities (SGM) of specific marginalized racial/ethnic groups. Future responses to SGM asthma inequities should include public health campaigns, low-cost screening and treatment targeting SGM individuals, and policies improving air quality in urban areas

Making the case for a preferences in information processing model of suicide

Background: In recent years, practice friendly models of suicidal behavior have emerged in the form of "ideation-to-action" frameworks. These frameworks focus on processes influencing both the formation of suicidal ideation and the translation of that ideation to suicide attempt and death. In this paper, we proffer an emerging model of suicide, Preferences in Information Processing (PIP), to augment contemporary suicide theories. First, we provide a primer on dual-process models of information processing theory and research as the foundation for the PIP. Next, drawing on a number of initial cross-sectional studies, we outline a rationale and examples of how preferences in motivated affect (i.e., Need for Affect) and cognition (i.e., Need for Cognition) may be integrated into existing ideation-to-action frameworks. Methods: We conducted secondary analysis of our pooled community sample PIP data. Results: We present new findings suggesting Need for Affect avoidance and Need for Cognition may be clinically relevant for persons at escalated risk for suicide. Conclusion: The PIP offers new testable propositions within ideation-to-action suicide frameworks. We end with recommendations for a research agenda to further investigate the potential validation and utility of a PIP approach to suicidology

“We Are Just Magic”: A Qualitative Examination of Self-Love Among Black Same-Gender Loving Men

Objectives: Black same-gender loving men (BSGLM) represent a population with understudied lived experiences as both racial and sexual minority individuals. Most existing research among BSGLM focuses on sexual health outcomes in the context of minority stress, without consideration of the full experiences of BSGLM or strengths-based approaches. The present study aimed to address this gap in the literature by examining self-love among BSGLM using a phenomenological qualitative approach. Method: Adult BSGLM in the U.S. (n = 19; Mage = 31.79 years [SD = 8.88]) were recruited online and completed interviews via phone and video conferencing. Data were coded independently by two trained coders via an iterative approach that included in vivo coding and line-by-line comparative coding. Codes were grouped thematically, guided by sexual minority identity and positive psychology literature. Results: Three major themes related to self-love among BSGLM emerged: (a) Freedom of identity, meaning participants’ ability to construct an identity outside of societal expectations; (b) Community connection and pride, or participants’ connection to and pride derived from the BSGLM community; and (c) Adversarial growth and resilience, or ways that adversity related to BSGLM identity generated personal growth. Conclusions: Current findings may have clinical implications. Using narrative therapy approach, facilitating connectedness to the BSGLM community, and implementing gratitude interventions in therapeutic settings may enhance self-love and positive self-regard among BSGLM. Future research should continue to give voice to the full lived experience of BSGLM

Social Support and Subjective Health in Fibromyalgia: Self-Compassion as a Mediator

Individuals with fibromyalgia report lower levels of health-related quality of life (HRQL) compared to other chronically ill populations and interpersonal factors (i.e., social support) may influence risk. What is less understood is how intrapersonal factors (i.e., self-compassion) may impact the social support-HRQL linkage. We examined the association between social support and HRQL in a sample of persons with fibromyalgia and tested the potential mediating role of self-compassion. Self-identified adults in the United States with fibromyalgia (N = 508) were recruited from state, regional, and national organizations and support groups and completed an online battery of self-report questionnaires including: Multidimensional Health Profile-Psychosocial Functioning Index, Short-Form 36 Health Survey, and Self-Compassion Scale-Short Form. Individuals with greater subjective social support reported higher levels of self-compassion and, in turn, higher mental HRQL. These findings provide greater information about psychosocial constructs and HRQL and extend our understanding of self-compassion among individuals living with fibromyalgia