Suicide Among University Students: Prevalence, Risks, and Protective Factors

Course overview

This course is based upon material published in Health Psychology and Behavioral Medicine and is available as an open access article. Background: Research evidence on suicide in Ghana so far has focused mostly on suicide in the adult population and less work on the younger population such as university students and other vulnerable groups such as children, youth and the aged. Aims: This study was conducted to determine lifetime and current prevalence of suicidal ideation or attempts and identify the associated risks and protective factors among university students in Ghana. Methods: Using a cross-sectional design, 1003 university students (507 males and 496 females) with a mean age of 20.5 years (SD = 5.95) were administered questionnaires that measured suicide, psychological distress, self-esteem and subjective wellbeing. Results: We found the following prevalence rates of suicidal behaviors: ideations 15.2%, attempted 6.3%, death wishes 24.3% and suicidal plan 6.8%. Psychological distress was a risk factor for both suicidal ideation and suicidal attempt. Subjective wellbeing was protective of suicide attempt while self-esteem was protective of suicidal ideation. Conclusions: These findings underscore the need for school-based mental health-promoting programs that enhance young peoples self-esteem, reduce psychological distress and boost subjective wellbeing. This course on suicide among university students is designed for social workers, professional counselors, psychologists, nurses, and substance abuse counselors, who do clinical work. This course is appropriate for beginning, intermediate and advanced level practitioners who wish to develop or increase their knowledge of young adult suicide. It may also be useful for licensed clinicians who require clinical continuing education courses for license renewal. The course is based on a journal article which includes research. It contains statistical analysis and data that some clinicians enjoy reading and others do not. A major benefit of reading research-based articles for continuing education is they provide practitioners with the latest findings in their field. Authors: Owusu-Ansah, Addae, Peasah, Asante, and Osafo Learning Objectives: This course will provide the practitioner with detailed information regarding suicide among university students. Specifically, a professional will: Identify the prevalence of suicide among university students Distinguish risk factors for suicide among university students Explain protective factors for suicide among university students Citation: Owusu-Ansah, F.E.; Addae, A.A.; Peasah, B.O.; Asante, K.O. & Osafo, J. (2020) Suicide among university students: prevalence, risks and protective factors, Health Psychology and Behavioral Medicine, 8:1, 220-233, DOI: 10.1080/21642850.2020.1766978