Identifying risk and protective factors for suicide

For all human beings, a core need in life is physical security. It is therefore staggering that, annually approximately 800.000 individuals end their life by suicide (WHO, 2021). Unfortunately, to
date, there are still many open questions surrounding the factors contributing to suicidal thoughts,
suicidal behavior and suicide. Therefore, the aim of the current thesis was to add knowledge about various risk factors as well as protective factors, that might link to suicide.
The results of this thesis show an association between suicidality and the severity of clinical symptoms (e.g. depression severity) and psychological complaints (e.g. hopelessness). With regards to cognitive risk factors, individuals with suicidality showed better social cognitive skills and lower performance on general cognitive (i.e. attention and verbal learning) tasks. Furthermore, we found a relation between self-harm behavior and weaker unconscious associations with words related to suicide/death. People with self-harm behavior also showed less self-compassion, and a lower level of mindfulness was related to a risk factor (entrapment) for suicidal thoughts. We also found individuals with suicidal thoughts to be less flexible in switching from one brain region to another across the brain, which could be an indicator of more rigidity.
The results of this PhD thesis contribute to a better understanding of the complexity of suicide and can be used for future studies about treatment and prevention methods. Ultimately, this will lead to an improved quality of life of individuals at risk for suicide and of our society as a whole.