To describe psychosocial characteristics of children and young adolescents who experienced the recent suicidal death of a parent or sibling.
Method
Sixteen families with children aged 5 years to 14 years and who experienced the suicidal death of a relative on average within the year of research assessment were recruited from the community and evaluated with standard research instruments for levels of children's psychiatric symptoms and social adjustment.
Results
Child survivors of suicide had a higher rate of internalizing symptoms and poorer school adjustment than a standard community sample. Twenty-five percent of the families had children who reported clinically significant symptoms of depression. Approximately 40% of the families included children who reported at least moderate symptoms of posttraumatic stress. Approximately 31% of families had at least one child who reported suicidal ideation, but no child reported a suicide attempt. Significant associations were identified between psychosocial features of the children and parental psychiatric symptoms and stressful life events.
Conclusion
Child survivors of suicide are at risk for psychiatric symptoms and social maladjustment which require early identification and preventive intervention to minimize risk for more extensive psychosocial morbidity.
Key Words
child suicide survivors
Cited by (0)
Aspects of this study are funded by a grant from the William T. Grant Foundation, a fund established in The New York Community Trust by DeWitt-Wallace, and The Klingenstein Third Generation Foundation. The authors thank Nilda Gonzales, M.D., Marianne Goodman, M.D., Pamela Foelsch, Ph.D., Stephen W. Hurt, Ph.D., Monique Kaim, Ph.D., and Bernard Walden for their assistance.