Abstract
Nonsuicidal and suicidal adolescent inpatients were compared to community high school students using behavioral measures of impulsivity. Measures of problem solving ability, hopelessness, and depression were also administered to all groups. The suicidal inpatients were characterized by greater impulsivity, hopelessness, and depression than both nonsuicidal inpatients and community high school students. There were no differences in problemsolving abilities found between the suicidal inpatients and either the nonsuicidal inpatients or the community controls.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
American Psychiatrie Association. (1987).Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (ed-rev.. Washington DC: Author.
Arffa, S. (1983). Cognition and suicide: A methodological review.Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior 13, 109–122.
Asarnow, J. R., Carlson, G. A., & Guthrie, D. (1987). Coping strategies, self-perceptions, hopelessness, and perceived family environments in depressed and suicidal children.Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology 55, 361–366.
Barkley, R. A. (1988). Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. In E. J. Mash & L. G. Terdal (Eds.),Treatment of childhood disorders (pp. 39–72). New York: Guilford Press.
Beck, A. T. (1963). Thinking and depression.Archives of General Psychiatry 9, 324–333.
Beck, A. T. (1967).Depression: Clinical, experimental, and theoretical aspects. New York: Harper & Row.
Beck, A. T., Ward, C. H., Mendelsohn, M., Mock, J., & Erbaugh, J. (1961). An inventory for measuring depression.Archives of General Psychiatry, 4, 561–571.
Beck, A. T., Weissman, A., Lester, D., & Trexler, L. (1974). The measurement of pessimism: The Hopelessness Scale.Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 42, 861–865.
Brown, G. L., Ebert, M. H., Goyer, P. F., Jimerson, D. C., Klein, W. J., Bunney, W. E., & Goodwin, F. K. (1982). Aggression, suicide, and seratonin: Relationships to CSF amine metabolites.American Journal of Psychiatry, 139, 741–746.
Brown, G. L., & Goodwin, F. K. (1986). Human aggression and suicide. In R. Maris (Ed.),Biology of suicide (pp. 141–161). New York: Guilford Press.
Cole, D. A. (1989). Psychopathology of adolescent suicide: Hopelessness, coping beliefs, and depression.Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 98, 248–255.
Crumley, F. E. (1979). Adolescent suicide attempts.Journal of the American Medical Association, 241, 2404–2407.
Emery, G. D., Steer, R. A., & Beck, A. T. (1981). Depression, hopelessness, and suicidal intent among heroin addicts.International Journal of the Addictions, 16, 425–429.
Gordon, M. (1987).Instruction manual for the Gordon Diagnostic System. DeWitt, NY: Author.
Gordon, M., & Mettelman, B. B. (1988). The assessment of attention: I. Standardization and reliability of a behavior-based measure.Journal of Clinical Psychology, 44, 682–690.
Halperin, J. M., O'Brien, J. D., Newcorn, J. H., Healy, J. M., Pascualvaca, D. M., Wolf, L. E., & Young, J. G. (1990). Validation of hyperactive, aggressive, and mixed hyperactive/aggressive childhood disorders: A research note.Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 31, 455–459.
Halperin, J. M., Wolf, L. E., Pascualvaca, D. M., Newcorn, J. H., Healy, J. M., O'Brien, J. D., Morganstein, A., & Young, J. G. (1988). Differential assessment of attention and impulsivity in children.Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 27, 326–329.
Hirschfeld, R. M. A., & Blumenthal, S. J. (1986). Personality, life events, and other psychosocial factors in adolescent depression and suicide. In G. L. Klerman (Ed.),Suicide and depression among adolescents and young adults (pp. 213–253). Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Press.
Keppel, G. (1982).Design and analysis: A researcher's handbook (2nd ed.). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
Lerner, M. S., & Clum, G. A. (1990). Treatment of suicide ideators: A problem-solving approach.Behavior Therapy, 21, 403–411.
Levenson, M., & Neuringer, C. (1971). Problem-solving behavior in suicidal adolescents.Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 37, 433–436.
Linehan, M. M., & Nielson, S. L. (1981). Assessment of suicide ideation and parasuicide: Hopelessness and social desirability.Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 49, 773–775.
Linnoila, M., Virkkunen, M., Scheinin, M., Nuutila, A., Rimon, R., & Goodwin, F. K. (1983). Low cerebrospinal fluid 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid concentration differentiates impulsive from nonimpulsive violent behavior.Life Sciences, 33, 2609–2614.
Malier, K., Halperin, J. M., Sharma, V., Newcorn, J. H., & Sathaye, N. (1992). Methylphenidate response in aggressive and nonaggressive ADHD children: Distinctions on laboratory measures of symptoms.Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 31, 219–225.
McLeavey, B. C., Daley, R. J., Murray, C. M., O'Riordan, J., & Taylor, M. (1987). Interpersonal problem-solving deficits in self-poisoning patients.Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, 17, 33–49.
Milich, R., & Kramer, J. (1984). Reflections on impulsivity: An empirical investigation of impulsivity as a construct. In K. D. Gadow (Ed.),Advances in learning and behavioral disabilities (pp. 57–94). Greenwich, CT: JAI Press.
Minkoff, K., Bergman, E., Beck, A. T., & Beck, R. (1973). Hopelessness, depression, and attempted suicide.American Journal of Psychiatry, 130, 455–459.
National Center for Health Statistics. (1986, September). Advance report of final mortality statistics, 1984.NCHS Monthly Vital Statistics Report, 35 (6, Suppl. 2).
Patsiokas, A. T., Clum, G. A., & Luscomb, R. L. (1979). Cognitive characteristics of suicide attempters.Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 47, 478–484.
Pfeffer, C. R. (1989). Studies of suicidal preadolescent and adolescent inpatients: A critique of research methods.Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, 19, 58–77.
Platt, J. J., & Spivack, G. (1975a).Manual for the Means-Ends Problem Solving Procedure (MEPS): A measure of interpersonal cognitive problem-solving skill. Philadelphia, PA: Hahnemann Medical College and Hospital.
Platt, J. J., & Spivack, G. (1975b). Unidimensionality of the means-end problem-solving procedure (MEPS).Journal of Clinical Psychology, 31, 15–16.
Rifai, A. H., Reynolds, C. F., & Mann, J. J. (1992). Biology of elderly suicide.Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, 22, 48–61.
Rosvold, H. E., Mirsky, A. F., Sarason, I., Bransome, E. D., & Beck, L. H. (1956). A continuous performance test of brain damage.Journal of Consulting Psychology, 20, 343–350.
Rotheram-Borus, M. J., Trautman, P. D., Dopkins, S. C., & Shrout, P. E. (1990). Cognitive style and pleasant activities among female adolescent suicide attempters.Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 58, 554–561.
Rubenstein, J. L., Heeren, T., Housman, D., Rubin, C., & Stechler, G. (1989). Suicidal behavior in “normal” adolescents: Risk and protective factors.American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 59, 59–71.
Schotte, D. E., & Clum, G. A. (1987). Problem-solving skills in suicidal psychiatric patients.Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 55, 49–54.
Shaffer, D. (1974). Suicide in childhood and early adolescence.Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 15, 275–291.
Spirito, A., Brown, L., Overholser, J., & Fritz, G. (1989). Attempted suicide in adolescence: A review and critique of the literature.Clinical Psychology Review, 9, 335–363.
Stephens, B. J. (1987). Cheap thrills and humble pie: The adolescence of female suicide attempters.Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, 17, 107–118.
Weissman, A. N., Beck, A. T., & Kovacs, M. (1979). Drug abuse, hopelessness, and suicidal behavior.International Journal of the Addictions, 14, 451–464.
Wetzel, R. D., Margulies, T., Davies, R., & Karum, E. (1980). Hopelessness, depression, and suicidal intent.Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, 41, 159–160.
Williams, C. L., Davidson, J. A., & Montgomery, I. (1980). Impulsive suicidal behavior.Journal of Clinical Psychology, 36, 90–94.
Withers, L. E., & Kaplan, D. W. (1987). Adolescents who attempt suicide: A retrospective clinical chart review of hospitalized patients.Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 18, 391–393.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Kashden, J., Fremouw, W.J., Callahan, T.S. et al. Impulsivity in suicidal and nonsuicidal adolescents. J Abnorm Child Psychol 21, 339–353 (1993). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00917538
Revised:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00917538