Veterans in America are at 22% increased risk for suicide compared to the general population, perhaps due to military experiences (e.g., killing another person) that contribute to maladaptive cognitive-emotional functioning, including feelings of self-blame. A lack of self-forgiveness may maintain feelings of shame, conceptualized as humiliation or distress following perception of having behaved wrongly, which may, further, deleteriously impact interpersonal functioning, increasing suicide risk. Shame may lead an individual to withdraw from others, resulting in thwarted belongingness (i.e., a perception of a lack of membership with a group), and may contribute to feeling like a burden (i.e., a perception of being taxing or restrictive to others), both of which are known predictors of suicide. The ability to forgive the self, however, may reduce feelings of shame and, in turn, improve interpersonal functioning and suicide risk; yet, this model has not been previously tested. At the bivariate level, we hypothesized that shame, perceived burdensomeness, thwarted belongingness, and suicide risk would all be positively related, and that they would all be inversely related to self-forgiveness. At the multivariate level, we tested two serial mediation models, hypothesizing that the relation between self-forgiveness and suicide risk would be mediated by shame (1st order) and perceived burdensomeness/thwarted belongingness (2nd order), such that lower levels of self-forgiveness would be associated with greater perceptions of shame and, in turn, to greater perceptions of burdensomeness and thwarted belongingness, and consequent greater suicide risk. Participants (N=551; Mean Age=50.4, SD=16.6) were recruited via online invitations distributed to veteran social media groups and were predominantly male (n=382, 69.3%) and White (n=469, 85.1%). Participants completed Fetzer’s Brief Multidimensional Measure of Religiousness and Spirituality (BMMRS), the Differential Emotions Scale (DES-IV), the Interpersonal Needs Questionnaire (INQ), and the Suicide Behaviors Questionnaire – Revised (SBQR). Bivariate correlations and multivariate analyses were conducted via the SPSS PROCESS macro (Hayes, 2013), covarying age, race, and sex, and utilizing a 10,000 bootstrapping sample. All bivariate hypotheses were supported at the pβ=.102, p=.437) when shame and perceived burdensomeness were added to the model (β=.642, pβ=.048, p=.733) when shame and thwarted belongingness were added to the model (β=.630, p

Suicide is a public health problem and complex relationships exist between intrapersonal suicide risk factors and interpersonal risk factors. Health-related quality of life (HRQL) may interact with difficulties with interpersonal relationships and psychopathology. We examined thwarted interpersonal needs and depressive symptoms as potential mediators on the association between HRQL and suicidal behaviors. It was hypothesized that thwarted interpersonal needs would mediate the association between HRQL and suicidal behavior, and that this mediating effect would be dependent on the moderating effect of depressive symptoms. It was hypothesized that thwarted interpersonal needs and then depressive symptoms would sequentially mediate the association between HRQL and suicidal behavior. The mediating roles of thwarted belongingness and perceived burdensomeness on the association between HRQL and suicidal behaviors were supported. Moderated-mediation results were not significant. Serial mediations analyses were partially supported. Our findings suggest the importance of considering both interand intrapersonal factors on suicidal behavior.

Suicide rates are higher in veterans than civilians, perhaps due to increased trauma exposure (e.g., sexual trauma, combat). However, not all veterans who experience trauma are at increased risk for suicidal behavior as some may experience an increased sense of purpose and meaning in life via posttraumatic growth (PTG). PTG, conceptualized as a positive transformation following trauma that results in improved function, may involve changes in cognitive-emotional processing, including increased feelings of connectedness and perceptions of value and contribution contributing to the well-being of others, as well as beneficial shifts in mood. The interpersonal theory of suicide posits that individuals who feel isolated (thwarted belongingness; TB), or like a burden (perceived burdensomeness; PB) are at increased risk for depression and suicidal ideation and attempts. Veterans who experience PTG after trauma may experience a beneficial shift in perceptions related to interpersonal needs (e.g., feel more connected, feel like less of a burden), with consequent benefits to mood and suicide risk. This premise has not been previously examined; therefore, we assessed the serial mediating effects of thwarted interpersonal needs (i.e., TB and PB, in separate models) and depression on the link between PTG and suicidal behavior. Participants (N=545; 70.1% male (n=382); 86.4% Caucasian (n=469), Mean Age=49.86, SD=16.78) were community-dwelling veterans, who completed the Posttraumatic Growth Inventory, Interpersonal Needs Questionnaire, Multidimensional Health Profile, and Suicide Behaviors Questionnaire-Revised. Bivariate correlations and serial mediation analyses were conducted covarying age, sex, and ethnicity. Serial mediation analyses supported hypotheses (10,000 bootstrapped samples); the total indirect effect of PTG on suicidal behaviors was significant when thwarted belongingness (IE= -.024, SE= .005, CI= -.036 to -.015) and perceived burdensomeness (IE= -.024, SE= .006, CI= -.036 to -.014), along with depression, were examined as serial mediators. Specific indirect effects of PTG on suicidal behaviors were also significant through thwarted belongingness (IE= -.015, SE= .005, CI= -.026 to -.008) in the first model and perceived burdensomeness (IE= -.016, SE= -.005, CI= -.027 to -.008) in the second model; however, there were no specific indirect effects observed through depressive symptoms in either model. Our results suggest that the relation between PTG and reduced suicidal behavior may be due to serial, adaptive shifts in cognitive-emotional processing related to interpersonal functioning and mood which, in turn, beneficially impact mood and suicide risk. Of note, there were no significant specific indirect effects with depressive symptoms. This pattern elucidates a potential mechanism between PTG and suicidal behavior, highlighting that the process of PTG does not, initially, involve a reduction of depressive symptoms but, rather, an improvement in perceptions regarding social connectedness and social self-value that has a cascading effect on mental health functioning. Our findings may have clinical implications. Cognitive reframing of traumatic events (e.g., via Cognitive Processing Therapy) and bolstering relationships and the perception of one’s value in a social network (e.g., via Interpersonal Therapy) may reduce depression and suicide risk in veterans.

Based on past research findings with college students, we tested whether perceived burdensomeness and thwarted belongingness represent important mediators of the association between future orientation and suicide risk (namely, depression and suicidality) in primary care patients. We conducted a multiple mediator test in a sample of 97 primary care patients. Our results indicated that perceived burdensomeness and thwarted belongingness accounted for the negative associations present between future orientation and measures of suicide risk. These findings provide evidence for perceived burdensomeness and thwarted belongingness as mechanisms accounting for the association between future orientation and suicide risk in primary care patients.

Recent changes in health care policy, which mandate the monitoring of illness symptoms and improving the satisfaction of medical patients, may shed light on possible points of intervention to improve patient-centered outcomes. Health-related quality of life (HRQL), or one’s appraisal of their mental and physical functioning, is a frequently-used metric relevant to improved health care outcomes. HRQL may be impacted by multiple inter- and intra-personal factors, whether an adaptive (e.g., social problem solving ability) or maladaptive effect (e.g., thwarted interpersonal needs, depression). We examined the association between social problem solving ability and mental and physical HRQL, and the potential mediating roles of thwarted interpersonal needs and depressive symptoms. Participants (N=223) were middle-aged and recruited from a primary care clinic. Our hypotheses that thwarted interpersonal needs and depressive symptoms would sequentially mediate the association between independent scales of social problem solving (negative problem orientation, positive problem orientation, rational problem solving, impulsive/careless style, avoidant style) and HRQL (mental and physical), were largely supported. Our findings highlight the importance of social problem solving ability as a potential point of intervention to improve mood, interpersonal functioning, and mental and physical health in an integrated care setting. Strategies such as Social Problem Solving Therapy might be particularly effective in bolstering social problem solving, with consequent beneficial effects on interpersonal functioning and mood, thereby improving overall health-related quality of life.

No description available.

Individuals experiencing chronic pain are at greater risk for suicidal behavior. The mechanism of action for this association is unexplored, but may involve the influence of pain on interpersonal functioning. We examined the mediating role of unsatisfied interpersonal needs on the relation between pain severity and interference, and suicidal behavior. Low income, uninsured participants completed self-report measures of pain severity and interference, thwarted interpersonal needs and suicidal behavior. Our hypotheses were partially supported; in simple mediation models, an indirect only effect existed for both thwarted belongingness and perceived burdensomeness in the relation between pain severity and pain interference and suicidal behavior. These effects did not persist in multiple mediation analyses. Our findings suggest that, for patients experiencing pain, assessment and improvement of the quantity and quality of interpersonal relationships may reduce risk for suicide ideation and attempts.

Many vital components of clinical practice including placement of candidate with clinical faculty remain unaddressed in current research. Missing from formal mentoring research is recognition of the best-quality way to pair mentors and protégés in order for both parties to receive the most benefits from the relationship. Mentoring has been shown to be foundational to the retention of career and technical education teachers making mentoring especially critical. The candidate population for the study included students enrolled in clinical practice during the spring of 2009 in agricultural education certification programs at 14 different universities. Findings using a matched pairs t-tests were conducted to reach the heart of the study, the dyadic mentoring relationships between candidate and clinical faculty. Cognitive effect, an indicator of problem solving style was not found to be a significant factor in the study. However, cognitive affect, an indicator of interpersonal orientation found many significant differences. Significance was found at the 0.05 level in the areas of candidate expressed inclusion and clinical faculty wanted inclusion (t=5.27), candidate expressed total and clinical faculty wanted total (t=3.88), candidate wanted control and clinical faculty expressed control (t=-2.97). Significance was also found at the 0.01 level of significance for candidate wanted total and clinical faculty expressed total (t=-2.37). In the area of behavior a matched pairs t-test determined perceived psychosocial support (t=-2.86) and perceived total support (t=-2.32) to be significant. Mentoring and clinical practice are extremely dynamic constructs as many different influences are present from personal preferences to the way people naturally and holistically function. When universities identify clinical faculty, attention should be paid to the matching of dyads in order to emulate an informal mentoring experience to the greatest extent possible. Although mentoring is extremely complex, the research indicates promise for agreement and promise for continued research to benefit not only individuals, but our entire profession. / Master of Science in Life Sciences

Non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI), or deliberate self-harm, and suicidal behaviors are significant public health concerns, and college students may be at particular risk. For instance, approximately 17% of college students engage in NSSI and suicide is the 2nd leading cause of death in college students. Commonalities between NSSI and suicidal behavior exist, including etiology; as an example, misuse of substances and interpersonal difficulties are related to both outcomes. For college students, substance use disorders and social dysfunction are two of the most common psychosocial problems; for instance, 22% of students report illicit drug use and social isolation, loneliness and separation from traditional support systems are common collegiate stressors. According to the Interpersonal Theory of Suicide, two pertinent interpersonal risk factors are perceived burdensomeness (the belief that one is a liability to others) and thwarted belongingness (the unmet need to belong among others). When present, substance misuse and interpersonal dysfunction may facilitate the transition between NSSI and suicidal behavior; however, this premise has not been previously examined. As such, we hypothesized that substance abuse would mediate the relation between NSSI and suicidal behavior, such that engagement in NSSI would be related to greater use of substances and, in turn, to suicidal behavior. Further, we hypothesized that thwarted interpersonal needs would moderate this mediating effect, such that increased TB and PB would exacerbate the mediating effect of substance misuse. Our sample of college students (N=338) was primarily white (89.6%; n=294), female (67%; n=225), and had an average age of 21.8 years (SD=4.7). Participants completed the Suicide Behaviors Questionnaire-Revised, the Self-Harm Inventory, the Interpersonal Needs Questionnaire, and the Drug Abuse Screening Test. Supporting hypotheses, substance abuse partially mediated the relationship between NSSI and suicidal behavior (DE=1.30, SE=.10, p

本研究以人際關係為出發點，希望了解在社群網站形成的人際關係網絡中，個人自我呈現需求和人際關係需求與自我揭露之關聯，揭露對象的差異以及人格特質的影響。本研究以問卷調查法進行，對擁有Facebook帳號者之使用者發放問卷。結果顯示，個人提升自我形象、主動包容和情感期待需求對於在社群網站中向普通朋友及親密朋友的自我揭露有正向影響，情感表達需求對於在社群網站中向普通朋友的自我揭露有正向影響；被動歸屬需求對則普通朋友及親密朋友的自我揭露有負向影響。 此外，外向與自戀人格特質的使用者自我揭露行為上，也有不同的發現。內向的人的被動歸屬需求對普通朋友及親密朋友的自我揭露有負向影響，且被動引導需求對親密朋友的自我揭露有正向影響。而自戀的人的主動控制需求對普通朋友的自我揭露有正向影響。 研究結果提供了基於人際關係需求的社群網站自我揭露動機，並分析面對不同揭露對象時，人際關係需求對揭露的差異，對社群網站使用者的動機和行為有更深入的了解，並提供理論基礎。而針對不同人格特質的使用者，比較在社群網站自我揭露之差異，了解社群網站使用者的不同面貌。 / This study tried to understand the influence of self-presentation need, interpersonal need on self-disclosure of normal friend and close friend at the social network sites. Sample survey was applied to investigate Facebook users. The result reveals that “self-promotion”, “expressed inclusion”, and “wanted affection” needs have positive impacts on self-disclosure of normal friend and close friend in SNS. “Expressed affection” needs have positive impacts on self-disclosure of normal friend. In addition, “wanted inclusion” has negative influence. Furthermore, there are some different findings among extroverted, introverted, narcissistic and non-narcissistic groups.