Life Stress and Symptomatology: Determinants of Suicidal Behavior in Children

Seventy-six children, aged 5 to 14, consecutively discharged from an inpatient psychiatric unit, were assigned by stringent operational criteria to either suicidal, depressed, or psychiatric control groups. Through a review of medical records, children were compared on measures of life stress and symptomatology for their total lifespan, for four defined developmental periods, and for the year preceding admission. Compared to both depressed and psychiatric control children, suicidal children experienced increasing and significantly greater amounts of stress as they matured, including a number of specific chaotic and disruptive family events which resulted in losses and separations from important people. Journal of the American Academy of Child Psychiatry, 21, 2:178–186, 1982.