Suicidal ideation

Assessment | Biopsychology | Comparative | Cognitive | Developmental | Language | Individual differences | Personality | Philosophy | Social |
Methods | Statistics | Clinical | Educational | Industrial | Professional items | World psychology |

Clinical: Approaches · Group therapy · Techniques · Types of problem · Areas of specialism · Taxonomies · Therapeutic issues · Modes of delivery · Model translation project · Personal experiences ·

---

Suicidal ideation is a common medical term for thoughts about suicide, which may be as detailed as a formulated plan, without the suicidal act itself. Although most people who undergo suicidal ideation do not commit suicide, some go on to make suicide attempts or take their own lives. The range of suicidal ideation varies greatly from fleeting to detailed planning, role playing and unsuccessful attempts, which may be deliberately constructed to fail or be discovered or may be fully intended to succeed but not actually do so.

Suicidal ideation should not be ignored; at the very least it indicates an unhappiness with life that could be addressed. Regardless of what percentage of people with suicidal ideation commit suicide, it is still a risk factor for suicide. A trained psychologist or psychiatrist should be making the final evaluation on the risk of suicide, and even they are sometimes wrong. In a study conducted in Finland, 22% of the suicide victims examined had discussed suicidal intent with a health care professional in their last office visit (Halgin, 2006). An untrained person should not ignore warning signs of suicidality; a failure to respond may carry devastating consequences.

References

• Halgin, Richard P.; Susan Whitbourne (2006). Abnormal psychology : clinical perspectives on psychological disorders, pp. 267-272, Boston : McGraw-Hill. ISBN 0-07-322872-9.
• Beck, AT, Steer, RA; Kovacs, M; Garrison, B (1985). Hopelessness and eventual suicide: a 10-year prospective study of patients hospitalized with suicidal ideation. Am J Psychiatry 142 (5): 559–563.
• Uncapher, H (2000-2001). Cognitive biases and suicidal ideation in elderly psychiatric inpatients. Omega 42 (1): 21–36.
• Uncapher, H, Gallagher-Thompson, D; Osgood, NJ (1998). Hopelessness and suicidal ideation in older adults. The Gerontologist 38 (1): 62–70.

External links

• Evaluation and Treatment of Patients with Suicidal Ideation
• Suicidal Thoughts

Suicide Clinical aspects Suicide crisis Assessment of suicide risk Intervention | Prevention Crisis hotline | Suicide watch Suicide and mental health Attempted suicide Related phenomena Parasuicide | Self-harm Suicidal ideation | Suicide note Types of suicide Suicide by method Altruistic suicide Assisted suicide | Copycat suicide Cult suicide | Euthanasia Forced suicide| Internet suicide Mass suicide | Murder-suicide Ritual suicide | Suicide attack Suicide pact | Teenage suicide Jail suicide | Copycat suicide Further aspects Suicide and gender Suicide and occupation Suicide crisis intervention Suicide prevention centres Suicide and clinical training Views on suicide History of suicide Medical | Cultural Legal | Philosophical Religious | Right to die

fr:Idée suicidaire