Abstract
Protective factors (hope, spirituality, self-efficacy, coping, social support–family, social support–friends, and effectiveness of obtaining resources) against suicide attempts were examined in economically, educationally, and socially disadvantaged African American women (100 suicide attempters, 100 nonattempters) who had experienced recent intimate partner violence. Significant positive associations were found between all possible pairs of protective factors. Bivariate logistic regressions revealed that higher scores on each of the seven protective factors predicted nonattempter status; multivariate logistic regressions indicated that higher scores on measures of hope or social support–family showed unique predictive value for nonattempter status. Further, the multivariate model accurately predicted suicide attempt status 69.5% of the time. Partial support was found for a cumulative protective model hypothesizing a linear relationship between the number of protective factors endorsed and decreased risk for suicide attempts. Implications of these findings for community-based preventive intervention efforts and future research are discussed.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
References
Abbott, J., Johnson, R., Koziol-McLain, J., & Lowenstein, S. R. (1995). Domestic violence against women: Incidence and prevalence in an emergency room department. JAMA, 273, 1763–1767.
Anderson, P. L., Tiro, J. A., Price, A. W., Bender, M. A., & Kaslow, N. J. (2002). Additive impact of childhood emotional, physical, and sexual abuse on suicide attempts among low-income African American women. Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, 32, 131–138.
Bandura, A. (1982). Self-efficacy mechanism in human agency. American Psychologist, 37, 122–147.
Bandura, A. (1986). Social foundations of thought and action: A social cognitive theory. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
Bandura, A. (1997). Self-efficacy: The exercise of control. New York: Freeman.
Beck, A. T. (1986). Hopelessness as a predictor of eventual suicide. In J. J. Mann & M. Stanley (Eds.), Psychobiology of suicidal behavior (pp. 90–96). New York: Academy of Sciences.
Beck, A. T., Brown, G., Berchick, R. J., Stewart, B. L., & Steer, R. A. (1990). Relationship between hopelessness and ultimate suicide: A replication with psychiatric outpatients. American Journal of Psychiatry, 147, 190–195.
Beck, A. T., Weissman, A., Lester, D., & Trexler, L. (1974). The measurement of pessimism: The hopelessness scale. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 47, 861–865.
Bergman, B., & Brismar, B. (1991). Suicide attempts by battered wives. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavia, 83, 380–384.
Blumenthal, S. J., & Kupfer, D. J. (Eds.). (1990). Suicide over the life cycle: Risk factors, assessment, and treatment of suicidal patients. Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Press.
Bradley, R. H., & Corwyn, R. F. (2001). Home environment and behavioral development during early adolescence: The mediating and moderating roles of self-efficacy beliefs. Merrill-Palmer Quarterly, 47, 165–187.
Bybee, D. I., & Sullivan, C. M. (2002). The process through which an advocacy intervention resulted in positive change for battered women over time. American Journal of Community Psychology, 30, 103–132.
Campbell, D. W., Campbell, J., King, C., Parker, B., & Ryan, J. (1994). The reliability and factor structure of the Index of Spouse Abuse with African American women. Violence and Victims, 9, 259–274.
Canetto, S. S., & Lester, D. (Eds.). (1995). Women and suicidal behavior. New York: Springer.
Coker, A. L., Smith, P. H., Thompson, M. P., McKeown, R. E., Bethea, L., & Davis, K. E. (2002). Social support protects against the negative effects of partner violence on mental health. Journal of Women’s Health and Gender-Based Medicine, 11, 465–476.
Collins, S., & Cutliffe, J. R. (2003). Addressing hopelessness in people with suicidal ideation: Building upon the therapeutic relationship utilizing a cognitive behavioral approach. Journal of Psychiatric and Mental Health Nursing, 10, 175–185.
Comstock, G. W., & Partridge, K. B. (1972). Church attendance and health. Journal of Chronic Disease, 25, 665–672.
Cook, S. L., Conrad, L., Bender, M., & Kaslow, N. J. (2003). The internal validity of the Index of Spouse Abuse. Violence and Victims, 18, 641–657.
Coward, D. (1996). Self-transcendence and correlates in a healthy population. Nursing Research, 45, 116–121.
Cozzarelli, C. (1993). Personality and self-efficacy as predictors of coping with abortion. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 65, 1224–1236.
Dutton, M. A., Mitchell, B., & Haywood, Y. (1996). The emergency department as a violence prevention center. Journal of the American Medical Women’s Association, 51, 92–96.
Early, K. E. (1992). Religion and suicide in the African American community. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.
Edmonson, J. R. (2002). Hopelessness, self-efficacy, self-esteem and powerlessness in relation to American Indian suicide. Dissertation Abstracts International, 63(2-A), 767.
Edwards, M. J., & Holden, R. R. (2001). Coping, meaning in life, and suicidal manifestations: Examining gender differences. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 57, 1517–1534.
Felitti, V. J., Anda, R. F., Nordenberg, D., Williamson, D. F., Spitz, A. M., Edward, V., et al. (1998). Relationship of childhood abuse and household dysfunction to many of the leading causes of death in adults. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 14, 245–258.
Few, A. L., & Bell-Scott, P. (2002). Grounding our feet and hearts: Black women’s coping strategies in psychologically abusive dating relationships. In C. M. West (Ed.), Violence in the lives of Black women: Battered, Black, and blue (pp. 59–77). New York: Haworth Press.
Folstein, M. F., Folstein, S. E., McHugh, P. R., & Fanjiang, G. (1975). Mini-Mental State Examination. Odessa, FL: Psychological Assessment Resources.
Gary, F. A., Yarandi, H. N., & Scruggs, F. C. (2003). Suicide among African Americans: Reflections and a call to action. Issues in Mental Health Nursing, 24, 353–375.
George, L. K., Ellison, C. G., & Larson, D. B. (2002). Explaining the relationships between religious involvement and health. Psychological Inquiry, 13, 190–200.
Gibbs, J. T. (1997). African-American suicide: A cultural paradox. Suicide & Life-Threatening Behavior, 27, 68–79.
Goldsmith, S. K., Pellmar, T. C., Kleinman, A. M., & Bunney, W. E. (Eds.). (2002). Reducing suicide: A national imperative. Washington, DC: National Academies Press.
Greening, L., & Stoppelbein, L. (2002). Religiosity, attributional style, and social support as psychosocial buffers for African American and White adolescents’ perceived risk for suicide. Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, 32, 404–417.
Hanna, F. J. (1991). Suicide and hope: The common ground. Journal of Mental Health Counseling, 13, 459–472.
Harris, T. L., & Molock, S. D. (2000). Cultural orientation, family cohesion and family support in suicide ideation and depression among African American college students. Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, 30, 341–353.
Heron, R. L., Twomey, H. B., Jacobs, D. P., & Kaslow, N. J. (1997). Culturally competent interventions for abused and suicidal African American women. Psychotherapy: Theory, Research, Practice, Training, 34, 410–424.
Heron, S. L., Thompson, M. P., Jackson, E., & Kaslow, N. J. (2003). Do responses to an intimate partner violence screen predict scores on a comprehensive measure of intimate partner violence in low-income black women? Annals of Emergency Medicine, 42, 483–491.
Herth, K. (1992). Abbreviated instrument to measure hope: Development and psychometric evaluation. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 17, 1251–1259.
Hobfoll, S. E., Dunahoo, C. L., Ben-Porath, Y., & Monnier, J. (1994). Gender and coping: The dual axis model of coping. American Journal of Community Psychology, 22, 49–82.
Hudson, W. W., & McIntosh, S. R. (1981). The assessment of spouse abuse: Two quantifiable dimensions. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 43, 873–888.
Hurd, E. P., Moore, C., & Rogers, R. (1995). Quiet success: Parenting strengths among African Americans. The Journal of Contemporary Human Services, 7, 434–443.
Hyman, B., & Williams, L. (2001). Resilience among women survivors of child sexual abuse. Affilia, 16, 198–219.
Ialongo, N., McCreary, B. K., Pearson, J. L., Koenig, A. L., Wagner, B. M., Schmidt, N. B., et al. (2002). Suicidal behavior among urban, African American young adults. Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, 32, 256–271.
Jackson, L. C. (2000). Psychotherapy with African American women: Innovations in psychodynamic perspectives and practice. New York: Guilford Press.
Jacobs, D. G. (1999). The Harvard Medical School guide to suicide assessment and intervention. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Kachur, S. P., Potter, L. B., James, S. P., & Powell, K. E. (1995). Suicide in the United States: 1980–1992. Violence surveillance summary series no. 1. Atlanta, GA: National Center for Injury Prevention & Control, Centers for Disease Control & Prevention.
Kanuha, V. (1994). Women of color in battering relationships. In L. Comas-Diaz & B. Greene (Eds.), Women of color: Integrating ethnic and gender identities in psychotherapy (pp. 428–454). New York: Guilford Press.
Kaplan, M. L., Asnis, G. M., Lipshitz, D. S., & Chorney, P. (1995). Suicidal behavior and abuse in psychiatric outpatients. Comprehensive Psychiatry, 36, 299–235.
Kaslow, N., Thompson, M., Meadows, L., Chance, S., Puett, R., Hollins, L., et al. (2000). Risk factors for suicide attempts among African American women. Depression and Anxiety, 12, 13–20.
Kaslow, N. J., Price, A. W., Wyckoff, S., Bender, M., Sherry, A., Young, S., et al. (2004). Person factors associated with suicidal behavior among African American women and men. Cultural Diversity and Mental Health, 10, 5–22.
Kaslow, N. J., Thompson, M. P., Meadows, L. A., Jacobs, D., Chance, S., Gibb, B., et al. (1998). Factors that mediate and moderate the link between partner abuse and suicidal behavior in African American women. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 66, 533–540.
Kaslow, N. J., Thompson, M. P., Okun, A., Price, A., Young, S., Bender, M., et al. (2002). Risk and protective factors for suicidal behavior in abused African American women. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 70, 311–319.
Kotler, M., Iancu, I., Efroni, R., & Amir, M. (2001). Anger, impulsivity, social support, and suicide risk in patients with posttraumatic stress disorder. Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, 189, 162–167.
Larson, D. B., & Larson, S. S. (2001). Spirituality’s potential relevance to physical and emotional health: A brief review of quantitative research. Journal of Psychology and Theology, 31, 37–51.
Lazarus, R., & Folkman, S. (1984). Stress, appraisal, and coping. New York: Springer.
Linehan, M. M., Goodstein, J. L., Nielsen, S. L., & Chiles, J. A. (1983). Reasons for staying alive when you are thinking of killing yourself: The reasons for living inventory. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 51, 276–286.
Malone, K. M., Oquendo, M. A., Haas, G. L., Ellis, S. P., Li, S., & Mann, J. J. (2000). Protective factors against suicidal acts in major depression: Reasons for living. American Journal of Psychiatry, 157, 1084–1088.
Maris, R. W., Burman, A. L., Maltsberger, J. T., & Yufit, R. I. (Eds.). (1992). Assessment & prediction of suicide. New York: Guilford Press.
Masten, A. S. (1999). Resilience comes of age: Reflections on the past and outlook for the next generation of research. In M. D. Glantz & J. L. Johnson (Eds.), Resilience and development: Positive life adaptations (pp. 281–296). New York: Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers.
Masten, A. S., & Coatsworth, J. D. (1998). The development of competence in favorable and unfavorable environments. American Psychologist, 53, 205–220.
Miller, W. R., & Thoresen, C. E. (1999). Spirituality and health. In W. R. Miller (Ed.), Integrating spirituality into treatment: Resources for practitioners (pp. 3–18). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Miller, W. R., & Thoresen, C. E. (2003). Spirituality, religion, and health: An emerging research field. American Psychologist, 58, 24–35.
Moscicki, E. K. (2001). Epidemiology of completed and attempted suicide: Toward a framework for prevention. Clinical Neuroscience Research, 1, 310–323.
Nisbet, P. A. (1996). Protective factors for suicidal Black females. The American Association of Suicidology, 26, 325–341.
Nisbet, P. A., Duberstein, P. R., Yeates, C., & Seidlitz, L. (2000). The effect of participation in religious activities on suicide versus natural death in adults 50 and older. Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, 188, 543–546.
Palmer, C. J., Jr. (2001). African Americans, depression, and suicide risk. Journal of Black Psychology, 27, 100–111.
Paloutzian, R. F., & Ellison, C. W. (1982). Loneliness, spiritual well-being, and the quality of life. In L. A. Peplau & D. Perlman (Eds.), Loneliness: A sourcebook of current theory, research, and therapy (pp. 224–237). New York: Wiley Interscience.
Rabkin, J. G., & Remien, R. (1993). Suicidality in AIDS long-term survivors: What is the evidence? AIDS Care, 5, 401–411.
Range, L. M., & Penton, S. R. (1994). Hope, hopelessness, and suicidality in college students. Psychological Reports, 75, 456–458.
Rennison, C. M., & Planty, M. (2003). Nonlethal intimate partner violence: Examining race, gender, and income patterns. Violence and Victims, 18, 433–443.
Roberts, G. L., Lawrence, J. M., O’Toole, B. I., & Raphael, B. (1997). Domestic violence in the Emergency Department: I. Two case-control studies of victims. General Hospital Psychiatry, 19, 5–11.
Siegel, J. A. (2000). Aggressive behavior among women sexually abused as children. Violence and Victims, 15, 235–255.
Simon, T. R., Anderson, M., Thompson, M. P., Crosby, A., & Sacks, J. S. (2002). Assault victimization and suicidal ideation or behavior within a national sample of U.S. adults. Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, 32, 42–50.
Stack, S., & Wasserman, I. (1995). The effect of marriage, family, and religious ties on African American suicide ideology. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 57, 215–222.
Stark, E., & Flitcraft, A. (1996). Women at risk: Domestic violence and women’s health. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Sullivan, C. M., & Bybee, D. I. (1999). Reducing violence using community-based advocacy for women with abusive partners. Journal of Clinical and Consulting Psychology, 67, 43–53.
Sullivan, C. M., & Rumptz, M. H. (1994). Adjustment and needs of African-American women who utilized a domestic violence shelter. Violence and Victims, 9, 275–286.
Sullivan, C. M., Tan, C., Basta, J., Rumptz, M., & Davidson, W. (1992). An advocacy intervention program for women with abusive partners: Initial evaluation. American Journal of Community Psychology, 20, 309–332.
Taylor, S. E., Kemeny, M. E., Reed, G. M., Bower, J. E., & Gruenewald, T. L. (2000). Psychological resources, positive illusions, and health. American Psychologist, 55, 99–109.
Taylor, S. E., Lichtman, R. R., & Wood, J. V. (1984). Attributions, beliefs about control, and adjustments to breast cancer. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 46, 489–502.
Thompson, M. P., Kaslow, N. J., & Kingree, J. B. (2002). Risk factors for suicide attempts among African American women experiencing recent intimate partner violence. Violence and Victims, 17, 283–295.
Thompson, M. P., Kaslow, N. J., Kingree, J. B., Puett, R., Thompson, N. J., & Meadows, L. (1999). Partner abuse and posttraumatic stress disorder as risk factors for suicide attempts in a sample of low-income, inner-city women. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 12, 59–72.
Thompson, M. P., Kaslow, N. J., Short, L. M., & Wyckoff, S. (2002). The mediating roles of perceived social support and resources in the self-efficacy suicide attempts relation among African American women. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 70, 942–949.
Tolman, R. (2001). The validation of the Psychological Maltreatment of Women Inventory. In K. D. O’Leary & R. D. Maiuro (Eds.), Psychological abuse in violent domestic relations (pp. 47–59). New York: Springer.
Varvaro, F., & Palmer, M. (1993). Promotion of adaptation in battered women: A self-efficacy approach. Journal of the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners, 5, 264–270.
Vaux, A., Burda, P., Jr., & Stewart, D. (1986). Orientation toward utilizing support resources. Journal of Community Psychology, 14, 159–170.
Vaux, A., & Harrison, D. (1985). Support network characteristics associated with support utilization and perceived support. American Journal of Community Psychology, 13, 245–260.
Vaux, A., Riedel, S., & Stewart, D. (1987). Modes of social support: The Social Support Behaviors Scale. American Journal of Community Psychology, 15, 209–237.
West, C. M. (Ed.). (2002). Violence in the lives of Black women: Battered, black, and blue. New York: Haworth Press.
Williams, M., Parker, R., Baker, D., Parikh, N., Pitkin, K., Coates, W., et al. (1995). Inadequate functional health literacy among patients at two public hospitals. JAMA, 274, 1677–1682.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Meadows, L.A., Kaslow, N.J., Thompson, M.P. et al. Protective Factors Against Suicide Attempt Risk Among African American Women Experiencing Intimate Partner Violence. Am J Community Psychol 36, 109–121 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10464-005-6236-3
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10464-005-6236-3