Youth Suicide-related Thoughts and Attempts in Canada: Explaining the Role of Childhood Exposure to Maternal Depression
Year: 2018
Type: dissertation
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Objectives: Objectives of this thesis were to: 1) determine the cumulative incidence of suicide-related thoughts (SRT) and attempts (SA) in Canadian youth and young adults; 2) estimate the association between exposure to maternal depressive symptoms during the first decade of life and subsequent SRT and SA; and 3) identify possible moderators (sex, family structure, maternal social support and social cohesion) and mediators (child psychiatric symptoms) of this association in Canadian youth and young adults. Methods: A cohort was constructed by linking all cycles from the National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth, a nationally representative survey, from 1994-2009 in respondents 0-25 years. Exposure to maternal-reported depressive symptoms and moderators were measured when offspring were between 0-10 years, while mediators were measured when offspring were between 6-10 years. Offspring self-reported incident and recurrent SRT and SA were measured between 11-25 years. Time-to-event models under a counting process framework were used to estimate cumulative incidence, measures of associations and 95% confidence intervals (CI). Results: The incidence of SRT between 11-25 years was 29% (95% CI: 26-31%) in females and 19% (95% CI: 16-23%) in males, and the incidence of SA between 11-25 years was 16% (95% CI: 14-19%) in females and 7% (95% CI: 6-8%) in males. The risk of incident and recurrent SRT and SA was significantly elevated among females exposed to maternal depressive symptoms, but not in males. Hyperactivity/inattention and psychiatric comorbidity were significant mediators, explaining 60% of the association with SRT and SA, and 50% of the association with SA, respectively. Conclusions: These findings have implications for earlier age implementation of suicide prevention programs and upstream selective approaches. Family-based preventions targeting families where a mother is depressed, prenatal screening, and clinician monitoring of high-risk families could reduce the risk of entering the trajectory towards suicide.
Source: TSpace (University of Toronto)
Author: Sarah Goodday
Language: English
Subfield: Clinical Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2961753854