The Structure of Suicidal Beliefs: A Bifactor Analysis of the Suicide Cognitions Scale

The Suicide Cognitions Scale (SCS) was developed to measure a broad spectrum of suicidogenic cognitions collectively referred to as the suicidal belief system. Prior confirmatory factor analyses have suggested both a unidimensional and multidimensional structure and high intercorrelations among identified factors, suggesting the possible influence of an underlying general factor. The present study used bifactor analysis in a clinical sample of 97 treatment-seeking Army personnel with recent suicide ideation and a nonclinical sample of 193 military personnel and veterans with a lifetime history of suicide ideation or attempts. Results supported the strong influence of a general factor in addition to several specific factors that aligned with constructs articulated by several theories of suicide, and suggested the SCS is best interpreted as a unidimensional measure. Results suggest that narrower suicidogenic cognitions are influenced in large part by a strong general latent variable.