Research Roundup September 2026: Recently Published Findings From AFSP-Funded Studies

The Research Roundup is a regular update of recently published findings in suicide prevention research. AFSP-funded studies included in this roundup examined how…

• Culturally responsive suicide prevention may help Latina youth both emotionally and academically
• Fear and isolation can prevent people from disclosing suicidal thoughts
• People with lived experience can help researchers define what meaningful suicide prevention looks like, and
• Young people’s responses to distress may reveal information about future self-harm and suicide risk

Researcher: Jennifer Humensky
Institution: New York State Psychiatric Institute
Grant Type: 2013 Pilot Research Grant – $29,995
Grant Title: Life is Precious: Academic-Community Partnership to Reduce Suicidal Behavior in Latina Adolescents

Adolescence is a period when mental health and school experiences can deeply affect one another. Academic difficulties, including poor performance, disengagement, and problems staying connected to school are associated with suicidal thoughts and behaviors, while emotional distress can make it harder for young people to succeed academically. These challenges may be particularly important for Latina adolescents, who experience disparities in suicidal behavior while also navigating barriers that can affect educational success, including economic hardship, language differences, family responsibilities, and cultural expectations. Suicide prevention programs that address only symptoms may therefore miss important parts of a young person's life that contribute to wellbeing and future opportunity. Community-based approaches that combine mental health care with academic, family, social, and culturally responsive support may offer a way to interrupt this cycle and help young people thrive across multiple areas of their lives.

With AFSP funding, Dr. Jennifer Humensky examined whether Life is Precious™ (LIP), a culturally responsive, community-based afterschool program for Latina adolescents with a history of suicide attempts, could also improve academic performance and school functioning. Previous research has shown promising effects of LIP on suicidal thoughts and behaviors, depression, and trauma-related symptoms. In this study, researchers followed 43 adolescents aged 12 to 17 for up to one year, comparing 31 receiving LIP alongside outpatient treatment with 12 receiving usual outpatient care. Over time, grades improved among LIP participants while declining among those receiving usual care. Among LIP participants who initially reported failing a class, 24% reported no failures during follow-up, compared with none receiving usual care. LIP participants also showed a positive, though not statistically significant, pattern of better overall school functioning. While larger studies are needed, the findings suggest that a program already showing promise for suicide and mental health outcomes may also strengthen an important part of young people's everyday lives: their ability to succeed at school.

Citation: Tuda D, Stefancic A, Lam P, et al. Impact of the Life is Precious^TM Program on Academic Performance and School Functioning Among Latina Adolescents at Risk of Suicide. The Journal of School Nursing. 2026;42(4):409-417. doi:10.1177/10598405251319771  

Researcher: Igor Galynker, MD
Institution: Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Grant Type: 2023 Focus Grant — $1,500,000
Grant Title: Effectiveness of Diagnostic vs. Symptom-Only Suicide Crisis Syndrome Assessment (SCS-A) for Post-Discharge Suicide Prevention

Asking directly about suicidal thoughts is an important part of suicide prevention, but even a well-conducted assessment depends on whether someone is able and willing to share what they are experiencing. Research suggests that many people experiencing suicidal thoughts do not disclose them to clinicians, family members, friends, or anyone else. Some may fear judgment, hospitalization, or loss of autonomy, while others may feel ashamed, isolated, or unsure how to put their experience into words. In some cases, a suicidal crisis may also develop so quickly that there is little opportunity to tell someone beforehand. Understanding why people remain silent is therefore critical—not because disclosure can perfectly predict who will attempt suicide, but because reducing barriers to honest conversations can create more opportunities for connection, support, and intervention.

With AFSP funding, Dr. Igor Galynker and colleagues examined disclosure among 39 adults hospitalized in New York City following a suicide attempt, asking participants within seven days of their attempt whether they had previously shared their suicidal thoughts or intent with anyone. Nearly half (46%) reported that they had not. Among participants who described their reasons not to disclose, four themes emerged: fear of stigma or negative reactions, fear of consequences such as hospitalization or being stopped, isolation or having no one they felt able to talk to, and the sudden or impulsive nature of the attempt. Because participants were interviewed shortly after an attempt, the study offers a rare look at nondisclosure close to the time a suicidal crisis occurred rather than relying on memories months or years later. Although these findings require further research, they reinforce that asking about suicide is essential but may not always be enough. Creating environments where people feel safe disclosing, strengthening trusted social connections, and developing prevention strategies that do not depend solely on someone identifying and communicating their own risk may help create additional pathways to safety.

Citation: Garagiola, E. R., Bhatt, Y., Lawrence, H., Witerska, V., Rosen, T., Galynker, I., & Bloch-Elkouby, S. (2026). Patterns of suicidal ideation disclosure among acute psychiatric inpatients. Annals of general psychiatry, 25(1), 60. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12991-026-00669-y  

Researcher: Michele Berk, PhD, Marsha Linehan, PhD, Joan Asarnow, PhD
Institution: University of California, Los Angeles, University of Washington
Grant Type: 2014 Linked Standard Research Grant – $214,000
Grant Title: Suicidal and Self-Injurious Adolescents With Emotional Dysregulation

Suicide risk assessment often relies on what people are able and willing to report about their thoughts, emotions, and recent behavior. These conversations are essential, but self-report has limitations: people may fear stigma or hospitalization, have difficulty recognizing or describing what they are experiencing, or choose not to disclose suicidal thoughts. Researchers have therefore been exploring whether behavioral tasks could complement traditional assessments by measuring psychological processes as they happen. One area of interest is how people respond to frustration and distress, including their emotional reactions and ability to persist through an uncomfortable experience. Finding objective measures associated with future suicidal behavior could eventually give clinicians another source of information alongside conversations and questionnaires, particularly for adolescents with a history of suicidal behavior or self-harm. 

With their Linked Standard Research Grant, Dr. Joan Asarnow, Dr. Michele Berk, and Dr. Marsha Linehan examined whether adolescents’ responses during a computerized frustration task could help predict self-harm, suicidal ideation, and depression over the following year. The study followed 102 adolescents with histories of recurrent self-harm who completed the Mirror Tracing Persistence Task, which requires participants to trace geometric shapes under deliberately frustrating conditions while researchers measured changes in emotion and how long they persisted. While equivalent at the beginning, adolescents who showed less increase in negative emotion during the task went on to report greater self-harm, suicidal ideation, and depression severity across 12 months, while persistence and changes in positive emotion did not predict these outcomes. Although it may seem surprising that a weaker negative reaction predicted worse outcomes, the finding aligns with previous depression research suggesting that blunted emotional responses to distressing experiences may be a marker of greater depressive symptoms, which themselves often co-occur with self-harm and suicidal ideation. Although the finding requires replication and does not mean the task can currently determine an individual’s suicide risk, it suggests that measuring emotional responses as they happen may provide information about future risk for suicidal and self-harm behaviors that self-report alone cannot capture.

Citation: López R Jr, Ellis AJ, Henson V, Berk MS, McCauley E, Asarnow JR. The mirror tracing persistence task: an indicator of future adolescent suicide risk? Psychiatry Res Commun. 2026;6(3):100265. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psycom.2026.100265

Researchers: Maya Haasz, MD
Institution: University of Denver, School
Grant Type: 2024 Early Career Research Grant – $140,000
Grant Title: TEEN LENS: TEen ENgaged LEthal meaNS safety planning

Lethal means safety planning (i.e., temporarily reducing access to firearms and other highly lethal methods during periods of increased suicide risk) is one of the most important evidence-based strategies for preventing suicide. Emergency departments are increasingly screening young people for suicide risk, creating an opportunity to help families make their homes safer before returning home. Yet lethal means safety interventions have traditionally been designed around the perspectives of clinicians and caregivers, with teens themselves often left out of the conversation. The measures researchers use to determine whether these interventions are successful may similarly overlook outcomes that matter to young people and families, such as feeling safer, communicating more openly, knowing when and how to seek help, and feeling capable of carrying out a safety plan. Including people with lived experience in the development of these interventions may help ensure that suicide prevention is not only evidence-based, but also responsive to the people it is intended to serve. 

With her AFSP-funded work, Dr. Maya Haasz and colleagues are putting this principle into practice as they develop TEEN LENS ED, a brief, web-based lethal means safety planning tool designed to actively engage teens identified with elevated suicide risk in emergency departments. Rather than determining the intervention's priorities solely as researchers, the team formed a 12-member community advisory board that included clinicians, advocates, suicide loss survivors, and people with other lived experience. Their input broadened what the researchers considered meaningful measures of success: not only safer firearm and medication storage, but whether teens feel safer and better able to access help, families communicate more openly, caregivers feel capable of keeping their child safe, and families can successfully use their safety plan. The group even challenged seemingly straightforward measures, noting that more emergency department visits could sometimes reflect improved communication and help-seeking rather than a worse outcome. The work highlights an important part of the research process: the people most directly affected by suicide prevention can help shape the questions researchers ask, the outcomes they measure, and ultimately the interventions they build.

Citation: Haasz, M., Cafferty, R., Birdsey, N., Eckert, K., Parker, J., Berardi-Bloomfield, A., Weinberger, E., Bajaj, L., & Kwan, B. M. (2026). Engaging Community to Identify Patient-Centered Lethal Means Safety Outcomes for Youth. Pediatrics, 157(6), e2025075084. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2025-075084 

Learn more about the AFSP research grants featured in this monthly roundup, as well as others, here.