Category: Suicide and Self-Injury
Alexa Raudales, M.A.
University of Rhode Island
Providence, Rhode Island
Nicole Weiss, Ph.D.
Professor
University of Rhode Island
Kingston, Rhode Island
Heather Schatten, Ph.D.
Professor
Brown University & Butler Hospital
Providence, Rhode Island
Alexa Raudales, M.A.
University of Rhode Island
Providence, Rhode Island
Elizabeth Velkoff, Ph.D.
University of California San Diego
Portland, Oregon
Lily Brown, Ph.D.
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Lauren Haliczer, M.A., M.S.
PhD Candidate
University of Massachusetts Amherst
Providence, Rhode Island
Suicide is a leading cause of death in the United States, with nearly 46,000 deaths by suicide in 2020—or one death every 11 minutes. Marginalized populations, including those characterized by medical and psychological comorbidity, have higher rates of suicide, and as such, demand urgent attention. One of the strongest predictors of death by suicide is nonsuicidal self-harm (NSSI), which is pervasive among marginalized populations. Most of the research on suicide and NSSI among marginalized populations has relied on cross-sectional design, which is subject to recall bias and precludes conclusions about contextual antecedents in real-time. Recent advancements in the use of daily methods (e.g., ecological momentary assessment) allow for repeated assessments across time to enhance self-report accuracy and tease apart dynamic and bidirectional processes as they unfold within natural settings. These methods hold promise for informing the development of just-in-time adaptive interventions to reduce suicide and NSSI, particularly for marginalized populations at significantly elevated risk.
Therefore, the aim of this symposium is to showcase innovative daily methodologies applied to the study of suicide and NSSI among marginalized populations to help elucidate risk factors in real-world contexts. First, Raudales and colleagues will utilize a micro-longitudinal approach and cutting-edge analytics (dynamic structural equation modeling) to test reciprocal relations between emotion dysregulation and NSSI among survivors of sexual assault, and the moderating role of posttraumatic stress disorder. Following this, Velkoff and colleagues will use ecological momentary assessment to test the direction and nature of effects between interoceptive attention and NSSI among adults with co-occurring disordered eating. Next, Brown and colleagues will use ecological momentary assessment and wearable biosensors to examine variability, timing, and risk (affect) of suicidal ideation for persons living with HIV. Lastly, Haliczer and colleagues will use intensive longitudinal data to explore self-consciousness and negative emotional reactions to daily stressors as a key person-specific context increasing NSSI urges and behavior among high-risk young adult women.
Taken together, these findings reflect an important and necessary step in prevention and intervention efforts for suicide and NSSI among marginalized populations. We are fortunate to have Dr. Heather Schatten, an expert in suicidality, serve as a discussant for this symposium. Dr. Schatten will integrate findings from these presentations as efforts to ultimately help mitigate poor outcomes for suicide and NSSI among high-risk and marginalized populations.
Presenter: Alexa M. Raudales, M.A. – University of Rhode Island
Co-author: Manshu Yang, Ph.D. – University of Rhode Island
Co-author: Heather Schatten, Ph.D. – Brown University & Butler Hospital
Co-author: Michael Armey, PhD – Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University
Co-author: Nicole Weiss, Ph.D. – University of Rhode Island
Presenter: Elizabeth A. Velkoff, Ph.D. – University of California San Diego
Co-author: April Smith, Ph.D. – Auburn University
Presenter: Lily A. Brown, Ph.D. – University of Pennsylvania
Co-author: Yiqin Zhu, M.S. – University of Pennsylvania
Co-author: Kevin Narine, PhD – William James College
Co-author: Emily Ballentine, PhD – University of Pennsylvania
Presenter: Lauren A. Haliczer, M.A., M.S. – University of Massachusetts Amherst
Co-author: Katherine Dixon-Gordon, Ph.D. – University of Massachusetts Amherst