Skip to main content
PMC home page
Canadian Journal of Public Health = Revue Canadienne de Santé Publique logoLink to Canadian Journal of Public Health = Revue Canadienne de Santé Publique
. 2003 May 1;94(3):207–211. doi: 10.1007/BF03405068

Suicidal Behaviours Among Adolescents in Northern Nova Scotia

Gender Difference, Risk Factors and Health Service Utilization

JianLi Wang 111,✉, Jean Hughes 211, Gail Tomblin Murphy 211, Janet A Rigby 311, Donald B Langille 311
PMCID: PMC6979987  PMID: 12790496

Abstract

Objectives: To estimate the 12-month prevalence of suicidal behaviours by gender and to investigate the gender-specific factors associated with suicidal behaviours and to describe health service utilization by suicidal adolescents.

Methods: This was a cross-sectional study. The baseline data of the Adolescent Health Study conducted in northern Nova Scotia were used.

Results: Female students were more likely to report suicidal behaviours than male students (p<0.005). There was no gender difference in injurious suicide attempts. Depression was the strongest risk factor for suicidal behaviours in the two genders (p<0.005). Female students who reported drug use and living in a non-intact family were at higher risk of suicide attempts. Low self-esteem was positively associated with suicidal ideation and suicide planning among male students. Suicidal girls were more likely to seek professional help for emotional disturbance than boys. Family doctors were the most frequently contacted professional by suicidal adolescents.

Conclusions: Some factors associated with suicidal behaviours among adolescents may be gender specific. Suicidal behaviours have been considered a depressive symptom. Most suicidal students, however, had not contacted a health professional for an emotional problem in this population. This presents challenges for prevention of suicidal behaviours among adolescents.

Footnotes

Acknowledgement: The Adolescent Health Study was funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC). Grant number: #828-1999-1024.

References

  • 1.Hawton K. Suicide and attempted suicide. In: Paykel ES, editor. Handbook of Affective Disorder. London: Guilford; 1992. pp. 635–50. [Google Scholar]
  • 2.Shaffer D, Hicks R. Suicide and suicidal behaviors. In: McAnarney ER, Kreipe RE, Orr DP, Comerci GD, editors. Textbook of Adolescent Medicine. Philadelphia, PA: Saunders; 1992. pp. 979–86. [Google Scholar]
  • 3.Cote L, Pronovost J, Ross C. A Study of the Prevalence of Suicidal Behavior Among Adolescents of Region 04: Salient Facts. Shawinigan, PQ: Département de Santé Communautaire; 1989. [Google Scholar]
  • 4.Tousignant M, Hamel S, Bastien M. Family structure, parent-child relationships and suicidal behavior in high school. Santé Mentale du Québec. 1988;13:70–93. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 5.Joffe RT, Offord DR, Boyle MH. Ontario Child Health Study: Suicidal behavior in youth age 12–16 years. Am J Psychiatry. 1988;145(11):1420–23. doi: 10.1176/ajp.145.11.1420. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 6.Garrison CZ, McKeown RE, Valois RF, Vincent ML. Aggression, substance use, and suicidal behaviors in high school students. Am J Public Health. 1993;83(2):179–84. doi: 10.2105/AJPH.83.2.179. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 7.Lewinsohn PM, Rohde P, Seeley JR. Adolescent suicidal ideation and attempts: Prevalence, risk factors and clinical implications. Clin Psychol Sci Pract. 1996;3:25–46. doi: 10.1111/j.1468-2850.1996.tb00056.x. [DOI] [Google Scholar]
  • 8.Rey Gex C, Narring F, Ferron C, Michaud PA. Suicide attempts among adolescents in Switzerland: Prevalence, associated factors and comorbidity. Acta Psychiatr Scand. 1998;98:28–33. doi: 10.1111/j.1600-0447.1998.tb10038.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 9.Gould MS, King R, Greenwald S, Fisher P, Schwab-Stone M, Kramer R, et al. Psychopathology associated with suicidal ideation and attempts among children and adolescents. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 1998;37(9):915–23. doi: 10.1097/00004583-199809000-00011. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 10.Allison S, Roeger L, Martin G, Keeves J. Gender differences in the relationship between depression and suicidal ideation in young adolescents. Austr N Z J Psychiatry. 2001;35(4):498–503. doi: 10.1046/j.1440-1614.2001.00927.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 11.Lewinsohn PM, Rohde P, Seeley JR, Baldwin CL. Gender differences in suicide attempts from adolescence to young adulthood. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2001;40(4):427–34. doi: 10.1097/00004583-200104000-00011. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 12.Borowsky IW, Ireland M, Desnick MD. Adolescent suicide attempts: Risks and protectors. Pediatrics. 2001;107(3):485–93. doi: 10.1542/peds.107.3.485. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 13.Bagley C, Bolitho F, Bertrand L. Mental health profiles, suicidal behavior, and community sexual assault in 2112 Canadian adolescents. Crisis. 1995;16(3):126–31. doi: 10.1027/0227-5910.16.3.126. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 14.Hawton K. Sex and suicide: Gender differences in suicidal behaviour. Br J Psychiatry. 2000;177:484–85. doi: 10.1192/bjp.177.6.484. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 15.Charron MF. Suicide in Quebec: Statistical analysis. Quebec: Gouvernement du Québec, Ministère des Affaires Sociales; 1981. [Google Scholar]
  • 16.Kashani JH, Goddard P, Reid JC. Correlates of suicidal ideation in a community sample of children and adolescents. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 1989;28(6):912–17. doi: 10.1097/00004583-198911000-00016. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 17.de Man AF, Leduc CP, Labreche-Gauthier L. A French-Canadian Scale for suicide ideation for use with adolescents. Can J Behav Sci. 1993;25:126–34. doi: 10.1037/h0078786. [DOI] [Google Scholar]
  • 18.Robbins DR, Alessi NE. Depressive symptoms and suicidal behavior in adolescents. Am J Psychiatry. 1985;142(5):588–92. doi: 10.1176/ajp.142.5.588. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 19.Dukes RL, Lorch B. The effects of school, family, self-concept, and deviant behaviour on adolescent suicide ideation. J Adolesc. 1989;12(3):239–51. doi: 10.1016/0140-1971(89)90075-4. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 20.de Man AF, Leduc CP, Labreche-Gauthier L. Correlates of suicidal ideation in French-Canadian adolescents: Personal variables, stress, and social support. Adolescence. 1993;28(112):819–30. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 21.Joiner TE, Jr, Rudd MD. Negative attributable style for interpersonal events and the occurrence of severe interpersonal disruptions as predictors of self-reported suicidal ideation. Suicide Life Threat Behav. 1995;25(2):297–304. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 22.Edwards MJ, Holden RR. Coping, meaning in life, and suicidal manifestations: Examining gender differences. J Clin Psychol. 2001;57(12):1517–34. doi: 10.1002/jclp.1114. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 23.Kienhorst CW, de Wilde EJ, Van den Bout J, Diekstra RF, Wolters WH. Characteristics of suicide attempters in a population-based sample of Dutch adolescents. Br J Psychiatry. 1990;156:243–48. doi: 10.1192/bjp.156.2.243. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 24.Garnefski N, Diekstra RF. Adolescents from one parent, stepparent and intact families: Emotional problems and suicide attempts. J Adolesc. 1997;20(2):201–8. doi: 10.1006/jado.1996.0077. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 25.Gispert M, Wheeler K, Marsh L, Davis MS. Suicidal adolescents: Factors in evaluation. Adolescence. 1985;20(80):753–62. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 26.Rigby K, Slee P. Suicidal ideation among adolescent school children, involvement in bully-victim problems, and perceived social support. Suicide Life Threat Behav. 1999;29(2):119–30. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 27.West ML, Spreng SW, Rose SM, Adam KS. Relationship between attachment-felt security and history of suicidal behaviours in clinical adolescents. Can J Psychiatry. 1999;44(6):578–82. doi: 10.1177/070674379904400606. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 28.Langille DB, Tomblin Murphy G, Hughes J, Rigby JA. Nova Scotia high school students’ interactions with physicians for sexual health information and services. Can J Public Health. 2001;92(3):219–22. doi: 10.1007/BF03404310. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 29.Centers for Disease Control. 2001 Youth Risk Behavior Survey. 2001. [Google Scholar]
  • 30.Radloff LS. The CES-D scale: A self-report depression scale for research in the general population. Applied Psychological Measurement. 1977;1:385–401. doi: 10.1177/014662167700100306. [DOI] [Google Scholar]
  • 31.Rosenberg M. Society and the Adolescent Self-image. Middletown, CT: Wesleyan University Press; 1989. [Google Scholar]
  • 32.Schwarzer R. Measurement of Perceived Self-efficacy: Psychometric Scales for Cross-cultural Research. Berlin: Forschung an der Freien Universitat Berlin; 1995. [Google Scholar]
  • 33.Nowicki S, Strickland B. A locus of control scale for children. J Consult Clin Psychol. 1973;40(1):148–54. doi: 10.1037/h0033978. [DOI] [Google Scholar]
  • 34.Barrera M. Social support in the adjustment of pregnant adolescent assessment issues. In: Gottlieb BH, editor. Social Networks and Social Support. Beverly Hills: Sage Publications; 1981. [Google Scholar]
  • 35.StataCorp. Stata Statistical Software: Release 6.0. College Station, TX: Stata Corporation; 1999. [Google Scholar]
  • 36.Dieserud G, Roysamb E, Ekeberg O, Kraft P. Toward an integrative model of suicide attempt: A cognitive psychological approach. Suicide Life Threat Behav. 2001;31(2):153–68. doi: 10.1521/suli.31.2.153.21511. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 37.Jenkins JE, Zunguze ST. The relationship of family structure to adolescent drug use, peer affiliation, and perception of peer acceptance of drug use. Adolescence. 1998;33(132):811–22. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 38.Sobeck J, Abbey A, Agius E, Clinton M, Harrison K. Predicting early adolescent substance use: Do risk factors differ depending on age of onset? J Subst Abuse. 2000;11(1):89–102. doi: 10.1016/S0899-3289(99)00022-X. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Canadian Journal of Public Health = Revue Canadienne de Santé Publique are provided here courtesy of Springer

RESOURCES