Lifetime acute suicidal affective disturbance symptoms account for the link between suicide-specific rumination and lifetime past suicide attempts

•Suicide-specific rumination (SSR) and ASAD have each been linked to suicide attempts (SA).•This study examined ASAD as an indirect indicator of the relation between SSR and SAs.•ASAD accounted for the association between SSR and lifetime SAs, but not vice versa.•This effect was particularly driven by the suicidal intent component of ASAD. Suicide-specific rumination, defined as rumination about one's suicidal thoughts, intentions, and plans, and Acute Suicidal Affective Disturbance (ASAD) have each been proposed as relevant and proximal predictors of suicidal behavior. The purpose of the current study was to examine relations between suicide-specific rumination, ASAD, and previous number of lifetime suicide attempts, particularly whether ASAD accounted for the association between suicide-specific rumination and previous lifetime suicide attempts. Undergraduate students with a past history of suicidality (N = 300) completed measures of their suicide-specific rumination, lifetime ASAD symptoms, and lifetime history of suicide attempts on an online questionnaire in exchange for course credit. ASAD accounted for the association between suicide-specific rumination and lifetime number of past suicide attempts. This effect was particularly driven by suicidal intent aspect of ASAD, as opposed to the ASAD social alienation, self-alienation, and overarousal facets. An alternative model indicated that suicide-specific rumination did not account for the association between ASAD and lifetime past suicide attempts. This study utilized exclusively self-report measures and a cross-sectional design, thereby precluding inferences of causality. These findings indicated that ASAD may explain the relationship between suicide-specific rumination and lifetime past suicide attempts. Future research using a prospective design is needed to elucidate these patterns and determine causal relationships.