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Centre for Policy on Ageing | |
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When the solution is part of the problem
— problem solving in elderly suicide attempters | | Author(s) | Lawrence M Gibbs, Alexandre Y Dombrovski, Jennifer Morse |
| Journal title | International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, vol 24, no 12, December 2009 |
| Pages | pp 1396-1404 |
| Source | http://www.interscience.wiley.com/journal/gps |
| Keywords | Suicide ; Depression ; Cognitive processes ; Reasoning ; Emotions ; Evaluation ; United States of America. |
| Annotation | Depression, loss, and physical illness are associated with suicide in older people. However, the nature of individual vulnerability remains poorly understood. Poor problem solving has been suggested as a risk factor for suicide in younger adults. Unresolved problems may create an accumulation of stressors. Thus, those with perceived deficits in problem-solving ability may be predisposed to suicidal behaviour. To test this hypothesis, the authors investigated whether older suicide attempters perceived their problem solving as deficient. 64 individuals aged 60 and older participated in the study, including depressed suicide attempters, depressed non-attempters, and non-depressed controls. The social problem solving inventory - revised short-version was used to measure participants' perceived social problem solving, assessing both adaptive problem-solving dimensions (positive problem orientation and rational problem solving) and dysfunctional dimensions (negative problem orientation, impulsivity or carelessness, and avoidance). Depressed older adults who had attempted suicide perceived their overall problem solving as deficient, compared to non-suicidal depressed and non-depressed older people. Suicide attempters perceived their problems more negatively and approached them in a more impulsive manner. On rational problem solving and avoidant style sub-scales, suicide attempters did not differ from non-suicidal depressed. However, both depressed groups reported lower rational problem solving and higher avoidance compared to non-depressed controls. A perception of life problems as threatening and unsolvable and an impulsive approach to problem solving appear to predispose vulnerable older people to suicide. (KJ/RH). |
| Accession Number | CPA-100109226 A |
| Classmark | EV: ENR: DA: DC: DL: 4C: 7T |
Data © Centre for Policy on Ageing |
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| ...from the Ageinfo database published by Centre for Policy on Ageing. |
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