Relations between suicidal ideation and dimensions of depressive symptoms in high-school students

The aim of the study was to evaluate the link between the different dimensions of depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation in adolescents. A sample of 1057 adolescents completed the CES-D (Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale) and three additional items measuring suicidal ideation. The four dimensions of depressive symptoms on the CES-D (Depressed Affect, Loss of Positive Affect, Somatic and Retarded Activity, Interpersonal) were entered into regression analyses predicting the presence of any suicidal ideation and of the wish to kill oneself among participants with moderate/severe depressive symptoms ( n = 271 ). For both boys and girls Depressed Affect was the main significant predictor of the presence of any suicidal ideation and of the wish to kill oneself. There were two additional significant predictors for boys: Loss of Positive Affect positively predicted the presence of any suicidal ideation; Somatic and Retarded Activity negatively predicted the presence of the wish to kill oneself.