Crucial research about suicidal thoughts and behaviors is often done in a cross-sectional manner that only considers limited risk factors. This research is limited in scope and rarely produces meaningful results to inform treatment. This study uses a longitudinal design to follow 93 participants over approximately 6 months. Participants are individuals with autism and social anxiety who were part of high-risk groups for suicidality, sleep problems, and social isolation. Participants recorded their sleep patterns and suicidal thoughts daily via the phone app MetricWire and continuously wore a GENEActiv actigraphy device to tract their objective sleep patterns. The Columbia Suicide Severity Rating Scale (C-SSRS): Baseline/Screening Version, C- SSRS: Since Last Visit Version; The Insomnia Severity Index (ISI); The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI); and The Patient-Reported Outcome Measurement Information System (PROMIS) Level 2 Sleep Disturbance Adult Form were used to characterize the sample population. Data were analyzed using a longitudinal multilevel regression design. Findings indicate that perceived sleep quality was negatively correlated to suicide ideation over time. Self- reported sleep duration, gender, and Autism-Spectrum Quotient (AQ) score were not significant predictors of suicidal ideation over time. Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale-Self Report (LSAS) score was positively correlated to suicide ideation. Clinical implications of these findings suggest a renewed effort must be made to assess for suicidality in persons reporting social anxiety and that effective intervention to improve sleep quality could reduce suicidal ideation.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:BGMYU2/oai:scholarsarchive.byu.edu:etd-10899 |
| Date | 26 April 2023 |
| Creators | Regehr, Lindsay Jacalyn |
| Publisher | BYU ScholarsArchive |
| Source Sets | Brigham Young University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | Theses and Dissertations |
| Rights | https://lib.byu.edu/about/copyright/ |
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