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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Psychiatry
Sec. Adolescent and Young Adult Psychiatry
Volume 15 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2024.1443894

Reasons for living and depressive symptomatology in young adults with and without suicide attempts: A Moderated Mediation Approach

Provisionally accepted
Marta Brás Marta Brás 1,2*Cátia Martins Cátia Martins 1,2Cristina Nunes Cristina Nunes 1,2Saul Neves Jesus Saul Neves Jesus 1,3Ana Rita Madeira Ana Rita Madeira 1Cláudia Carmo Cláudia Carmo 1,2
  • 1 Psychology and Sciences of Education, University of Algarve, Faro, Portugal
  • 2 Centre for Research in Psychology, Autonomous University of Lisbon, Lisboa, Portugal
  • 3 CinTurs - Research Center for Tourism Sustainability and Well-being, Faro, Portugal

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Introduction. Suicide is a public health problem worldwide, being the fourth leading cause of death in young adult population (15-29 years). Therefore, it is important to identify its risk and protective factors, and how they interact to develop more effective interventions. The present study aims to analyze the relation between depressive symptoms, hopelessness (risk factors) with reasons for living (protective factors) and suicidal ideation in young adults with and without previous suicide attempts. Methods. A sample of 845 Portuguese young adults answered an online form which assessed suicidal ideation, hopelessness, depressive symptoms, and reasons for living. Mean comparisons, correlations, and moderated mediation analysis were computed. Results. Individuals with a history of suicide attempt showed higher mean levels in risk factors, compared to individuals without suicide attempt. When no history of suicide attempt was present, ideation was positively and significantly correlated to depression and hopelessness, and negatively correlated to the reasons for living. Higher levels of depressive symptomatology predict lower levels of reasons for living. Mediation and moderation relations were assessed in a model and the history of suicide attempts showed a relevant role. Conclusions. The evidence found in this study reinforce that reasons for living may play a preponderant role in suicidal ideation, that is as a negative mediator and therefore it can act as a protective factor.

    Keywords: Suicide, Depressive Symptoms, Reasons for living, Hopelessness, young adults

    Received: 04 Jun 2024; Accepted: 23 Dec 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Brás, Martins, Nunes, Jesus, Madeira and Carmo. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Marta Brás, Psychology and Sciences of Education, University of Algarve, Faro, Portugal

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