Profiles of Poly-Victimization and Suicide Risk among Young Adults

Research Aims: This study is the first epidemiological survey to examine poly-victimization exposure and protective factors against suicidal behaviors in a demographically diverse, national probability sample of 2,000 young adults ages 18-24. This study will use a novel, person-centered approach to investigate the relationship between multiple forms of violence (e.g., child maltreatment, bullying, sexual victimization, community violence, police victimization, witnessing violence) and suicide-related outcomes, accounting for differences based on gender, racial/ethnic, and sexual identity. We will also examine whether the relationship between latent classes of victimization and suicidal ideation and suicide attempts are moderated by factors related to risk transmission and risk mitigation (e.g., alcohol and drug use, delinquency, coping) and whether these relationships vary by race/ethnicity, gender, and sexual orientation. 

Study Sample and Design: An online cross-sectional survey will be administered to a U.S. general population probability sample of English-speaking adults ages 18 to 24. Qualtrics Panels© will be used to recruit a pre-determined sample size of 2,000 young adults, including oversampling of American Indian/Alaska Native, African American, Latino, and sexual and gender minority individuals. Suicidal ideation and attempts (assessed as independent outcomes) will be measured using the Self-Report Columbia-Suicide Severity Rating Scale. Experiences of violence will be assessed using the Juvenile Victimization Questionnaire (JVQ) and the Police Practices Inventory (PPI), which assesses indirect and direct exposure to multiple forms of violence and comprehensively accounts the type, severity, and frequency of violence exposure. Moderating social and demographic factors include validated measures of alcohol and drug use, depression, delinquency, coping, social connectedness, and peer and family social support.

Potential Impact: This study improves upon methodological limitations in prior studies and existing datasets by using novel and rigorous approaches to measure poly-victimization and suicide-related outcomes in a national probability sample of young adults, including gender, racial/ethnic, and sexual orientation minority groups. As such, this study will produce needed data on understudied, yet highly vulnerable, young adult populations and identify potential protective factors that may buffer suicide among groups most at risk. These findings can then inform the development of tailored and universal suicide prevention strategies for diverse populations of adolescents and young adults.

Next Steps: Understanding which profiles of victimization and trauma are related to suicidal behavior will provide us with a greater indication of underlying mechanisms, which we will then explore in an R21 or R01 longitudinal study investigating adolescent trajectories of violence, resilience, and suicide outcomes. Data from the proposed study are first needed to understand common patterns of victimization, their relationship to suicide outcomes, and protective factors that may mitigate suicide risk, including whether patterns in the data are robust to tests of gender, race/ethnicity, and sexual orientation differences. This study represents an important step to build this underdeveloped area of research through theory-driven, person-centered approaches, allowing for greater accuracy in predicting suicidal behaviors by accounting for the effects of violence victimization over time and factors that may support resilient trajectories among youth.