Work

Understanding When and Why Some Adolescent Girls Attempt Suicide: An Emerging Framework Integrating Menstrual Cycle Fluctuations in Risk

Year: 2020

Type: article

Abstract: The prevalence of suicidal thoughts and behaviors increases dramatically across the transition to puberty, particularly among adolescent girls. Yet we know little about why adolescent girls are at heightened risk, or when girls may be most likely to consider or engage in suicidal behavior. In this article, we outline evidence supporting a role for the menstrual cycle in the onset of and fluctuations in adolescent girls' suicide risk. This emerging framework outlines developmental (i.e., biological, social, and cognitive) characteristics that might place certain girls at higher risk (e.g., between-subjects factors), as well as potential mechanisms that occur during the perimenstrual phase of the menstrual cycle (i.e., within-subjects factors) that increase adolescent females' increased risk for suicide.

Source: Child Development Perspectives

DOI: 10.1111/cdep.12367

Authors: Sarah A Owens, Tory A Eisenlohr-Moul, Mitchell J Prinstein

Institutions: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, University of Illinois Chicago

Language: English

Topic: Suicide and Self-Harm Studies

Subfield: Clinical Psychology

Field: Psychology

Domain: Social Sciences

SDGs: Good health and well-being, Gender equality

Open Access status: green

Funders: National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Mental Health