Research finding · October 2023
An inability to sustain cognitive effort may relate to suicide attempts
Understanding what differentiates people who attempt suicide from those who do not is critical for developing better methods of detection and treatment. Research has shown the brain function in people who have attempted suicide tends to process information quickly but without reflection, as if things are “black or white,” and with less flexibility. More recent research has suggested there may be a common denominator underlying these cognitive processes, facilitating the mental states that could lead to an attempt – an inability to sustain cognitive effort, despite individual’s awareness of potential rewards to be gained.
To explore this cognitive marker further, Dr. James Bjork and his team recruited 48 Veterans receiving care for mood disorders and divided the sample into two groups – one group with a history of at least one suicide attempt, and one group without any suicide attempts – to compare difficulties in sustaining cognitive effort. Dr. Bjork administered cognitive tests that let the Veterans decide between tasks that varied in complexity and monetary reward. Results showed that Veterans who had previously attempted suicide opted out of earning higher monetary reward if earning it required slightly increased cognitive demand than Veterans with no history of suicide attempts. These results could inform future suicide risk detection, and importantly, the development of cognitive interventions.
Citation: Bjork, J. M., Sawyers, C. K., Straub, L. K., Garavito, D. M. N., & Westbrook, A. (2022). Cognitive effort avoidance in veterans with suicide attempt histories. Acta Psychologica, 231, 103788, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.actpsy.2022.103788
This finding comes from an AFSP-funded study — see the grant below ↓
