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Despite the wealth of information on suicide prevention issues and the widespread implementation of suicide prevention strategies, program evaluation efforts have been limited. Lack of sound program evaluation remains one of the most significant barriers to identification and implementation of effective intervention and prevention strategies. The purpose of this study was two-fold: to conduct a summative evaluation of the gatekeeper suicide prevention program implemented at the Toronto Transit Commission, and to concomitantly, appraise the efficacy and effectiveness of the Kirkpatrick evaluation model as an analytical framework to guide suicide prevention program evaluations. The study used a two-phase, sequential mixed-method approach of converging quantitative and qualitative methodologies. The quantitative study employed a repeated measures design and examined the immediate and long-term effects of the gatekeeper program on attitudes, knowledge, intervention abilities. The qualitative study consisted of semi-structured interviews and explored participants’ effective and utility reactions to the gatekeeper training program. The results of this study indicated safeTALK and suicideAWARE training programs increased participants’ knowledge of suicide and suicidal behaviour, enhanced positive attitudes toward the suicidal individual, suicide intervention, and improved intervention skills. The empirical findings from this study support the premise that the Kirkpatrick evaluation model could be adapted for use in gatekeeper program evaluations. The model provides a highly relevant, well-rounded, rigorous approach to suicide prevention program evaluations.

Despite the wealth of information on suicide prevention issues and the widespread implementation of suicide prevention strategies, program evaluation efforts have been limited. Lack of sound program evaluation remains one of the most significant barriers to identification and implementation of effective intervention and prevention strategies. The purpose of this study was two-fold: to conduct a summative evaluation of the gatekeeper suicide prevention program implemented at the Toronto Transit Commission, and to concomitantly, appraise the efficacy and effectiveness of the Kirkpatrick evaluation model as an analytical framework to guide suicide prevention program evaluations. The study used a two-phase, sequential mixed-method approach of converging quantitative and qualitative methodologies. The quantitative study employed a repeated measures design and examined the immediate and long-term effects of the gatekeeper program on attitudes, knowledge, intervention abilities. The qualitative study consisted of semi-structured interviews and explored participants’ effective and utility reactions to the gatekeeper training program. The results of this study indicated safeTALK and suicideAWARE training programs increased participants’ knowledge of suicide and suicidal behaviour, enhanced positive attitudes toward the suicidal individual, suicide intervention, and improved intervention skills. The empirical findings from this study support the premise that the Kirkpatrick evaluation model could be adapted for use in gatekeeper program evaluations. The model provides a highly relevant, well-rounded, rigorous approach to suicide prevention program evaluations.

Bakgrund: En av de vanligaste dödsorsakerna bland ungdomar i Sverige är suicid. Den ökade psykiska ohälsan är en vanlig bakomliggande orsak till suicidalitet bland unga. Vårdpersonal upplever ofta en osäkerhet i mötet med unga suicidalapatienter då de, i bemötandet, inte vet hur de ska gå tillväga. Kunskap om riskfaktorer, beteende och förutsägbarhet är viktiga faktorer för att i tid upptäcka ett suicidalt beteende. Syfte: Uppsatsen ska belysa hur vårdpersonal efter utbildning i suicidprevention kan förbättra omhändertagande och bemötande av suicidala ungdomar mellan 15 – 24 år. Metod: Studien är genomförd i form av en litteraturstudie där resultatet baseras på analysen av 10 vetenskapliga artiklar, både kvalitativa och kvantitativa, som noga granskades och bearbetades. Resultat: Resultatet visar att kunskapen om suicid är en viktig faktor för att underlätta vårdpersonalens möte med den unga suicidala patienten och ge en bättre omvårdnad. Det visade även på att attityden förändra på grund av att förståelsen för suicidbenägna patienter ökar.  Flera suicidanal ungdomar fångas upp tidigt då förståelsen för riskbeteendet ökar. Slutsats: Studien visar att ökar kunskapen om suicid prevention och behandling av suicid hos vårdpersonalen så ökar förståelse och attityder mot suicidala ungdomar förbättras. Vårdpersonalen har ett större självförtroende i att vårda suicidala ungdomar när kunskap finns hos vårdare om vad som kan utlösa suicidbeteende samt vilka riskbeteende som finns, vilket ger patienter en bättre vård. Utbildning leder också till förbättrar omhändertagande och bemötande av suicidala ungdomar. Klinisk betydelse: Ökad kunskap om suicid genom utbildning i kombination med att vårda suicidala unga ger en större förståelse för komplexiteten att vårda suicidala ungdomar. / Background: One of the most common causes of death among young people in Sweden is suicide. Mental illness, which is increasing, is a common underlying cause of suicidality among young people. Nurses often experience uncertainty in how to respond to young suicidal patients. Knowledge about risk factors, behavior and predictability are important factors to detection of a suicidal behavior in time Aim: The aim is to highlight how health professionals after suicide prevention can improve the care and treatment of suicidal adolescents between 15 - 24 years. Method: This study was preformed through a qualitative approach by reviewing 10 peer-reviewed articles both qualitative and quantitative. Result: The results show that education aimed at health care professionals regarding suicide is important factor in improving treatment of the suicidal patient. It also showed that the attitude change among health professionals towards suicidal patients. Conclusion: It is of great importance that health care professionals trained in the subject to be able to respond to patients in a professional manner and actively work with prevention in health care. If the health care professionals can see the patient from a holistic approach, and constantly go back and reconsider their view if the patient and their needs it will lead to a more person centered care. Clinical significance: Increased knowledge about suicide through education in combination with caring for young suicidal patients will give a greater understanding of the complexity of caring for suicidal adolescents.

Suicide is currently the third leading cause of death for adolescents ages 15- 24. While much attention has been given to this topic, no research has examined what specific information is being taught to pre-service school counselors. The purpose of this descriptive study was to evaluate the pre-service suicide prevention training in CACREP accredited school counseling programs. Fifteen areas of suicide prevention were assessed. The participants were 89 CACREP accredited programs. The instrument utilized was entitled Suicide Prevention Survey, and included fifteen areas of suicide prevention that could be included in program curriculum. The results were analyzed using frequencies and measures of central tendency. Respondents to the survey indicated that no CACREP programs offer a required course in suicide prevention. However, the issues of suicide were reported as being addressed in 39 different required and elective courses. Four percent (n=9) of the programs reported covering all fifteen categories included in the survey. One program reported coverage in area of suicide was non-existent. Implications for CACREP accredited programs as well as recommendations for future research is given. / Graduation date: 2003

The current study examined the efficacy of a 1 month future time perspective modification intervention over a 1 month and 6 months period. Participants (N = 92) with elevated scores on measures of depressive symptoms or suicidal ideation were assigned to either the intervention condition or a no-intervention control condition. A repeated-measures manova revealed that those in the time perspective modification intervention condition showed significant reductions in psychache and hopelessness at 1 month, relative to those in the control condition. Repeated-measures manovas did not reveal significantly greater changes in depressive symptoms, suicidal ideation, or future time perspective. No results at 6 months were found to be significant. These results suggest that a future time perspective modification intervention can reduce important predictors of suicidality, although the sustainability of these gains and their relation to suicide is unclear. / Thesis (Master, Psychology) -- Queen's University, 2011-08-29 13:29:07.463

The Van Staden’s Bridge has claimed 67 lives since its construction on 11 November 1971. A team of police officials, trained as negotiators who deal with suicide and hostage negotiation, are involved with the task of convincing suicidal persons who turn to the bridge to take their own lives, not to resort to suicide. They are responsible for persuading at least three people per week to reconisider suicide at this notorious bridge. The goal of this study was to explore and describe the experiences and coping resources of the SAPS suicide negotiation staff at the Van Staden’s Bridge, Thornhill, Port Elizabeth. A mixed methods study combining both the quantitative and qualitative approaches was implemented. An exploratory-descriptive design was used, because the topic is still a relatively under-researched area in South Africa. Two data collection measures, that is, the Coping Resources Inventory (CRI) and semi-structured interviewing were employed. The researcher conducted a pilot study to enhance the trustworthiness of the study. Non-probability, purposive sampling was employed to obtain research participants from the research population (suicide negotiation team), consisting of 12 members. Eight members participated voluntary in the quantitative data collection and of these a total of five participated in the qualitative research interviews. Six themes emerged from the results of the in-depth, semi-structured interviews: (1) experiences of SAPS suicide negotiators, (2) aspects that hinder the negotiation process, (3) characteristics of a negotiator, (4) important aspects of the negotiation process, (5) coping mechanisms of SAPS negotiators and (6) recommendations for rendering support to SAPS negotiators. The results from the CRI suggested that the participants have average coping resources with the cognitive domain being the lowest and both the social and physical domains being the highest. The limitations and the value of the study were outlined and finally, recommendations for future research were made.

The suicide rate in the United States continues to rise, and rates of Veteran deaths are 1.5 times greater than those of non-Veteran adults. Previous research demonstrates that higher rates of suicide acceptability are positively related to suicide planning, suicidal ideation, and attempts. Examining rates of suicide acceptability in a Veteran and non-Veteran sample may be one pathway to understand the process by which attitudes are linked to behaviors. Study 1: Study 1 included a preliminary examination of a pre-screening measure, the Veteran Verification Questionnaire (VVQ), which aims to increase the validity of a Veteran sample online and reduce possible misrepresentation. Results indicated that the VVQ successfully differentiated between Veterans and non-Veteran students. Additionally, participants that answered 8 out of 12 possible items correctly were more likely to be Veterans (89%) whereas a score of 7 or less indicated that the participant was more likely to be a student. Study 2: Study 2 first examined whether or not veterans and non-Veterans differed significantly on suicide acceptability when accounting for age and sex. Study 2 also examined whether Veteran status predicted suicide acceptability using the Attitudes Towards Suicide Scale in the sample after accounting for age, sex, suicide risk and exposure to suicide. The results demonstrated that suicide acceptability rates varied significantly between Veterans and non-Veterans such that Veterans endorsed higher rates of suicide acceptability. The results from a hierarchical multiple regression analysis indicate that suicide risk, suicide exposure, and Veteran status accounted for a total of 25% of the variance in acceptability scores. The findings also demonstrate that Veteran status only accounted for 4% of the total variance whereas suicide risk accounted for 10% and exposure to suicide behaviors accounted for 11%. Interestingly, the direction of these predictions between suicide risk and exposure to suicide with suicide attitudes were opposite of expected.

Background: Current social service prevention and interventions in suicidal distress follow a biomedical logic. Recently, critical suicidology and mad studies frameworks have criticized this single-fold approach for limiting the capacity of suicide prevention/intervention to respond to the range of human needs. Aims: The aim of this study was to uncover how people with history of suicidal distress understood their experience of distress, in particular the responses they find helpful and unhelpful. Methods: 4 participants were recruited for semi-structured interviews themed for conceptions of suicidal distress, the experience of ‘reaching out’, and mental health systems change. Results: The findings concluded that participants’ conception of suicidal distress differs from biomedical model paradigms. While practitioner’s responses rely on a notion of suicidal distress as discreet and de-contextual, participants explained suicidal distress as ongoing and based in life circumstances, advocating for a model of suicidal prevention/intervention highlighting the importance of relationships and empathy. / Thesis / Master of Social Work (MSW)

published_or_final_version / abstract / Psychology / Master / Master of Philosophy