Validation of a 9-item Perceived Suicide Awareness Scale (PSAS-9) for adolescents.

Baggio, Stéphanie; Nsingi, Neslie; Iglesias, Katia; Sapin, Marlène (2024). Validation of a 9-item Perceived Suicide Awareness Scale (PSAS-9) for adolescents. Journal of Affective Disorders, 352, pp. 306-311. Elsevier 10.1016/j.jad.2024.02.062

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BACKGROUND

Robust empirical data on suicide awareness are needed, to better plan and evaluate suicide prevention interventions. However, there is a lack of validated measures of suicide awareness. This is especially true for perceived suicide awareness, which focuses on perceived knowledge about suicide, willingness, and confidence to talk about suicide and get help. Using the theoretical framework of Social Cognitive Theory, this study aimed to validate a measure of perceived suicide awareness.

METHODS

We re-used data from a suicide prevention trial conducted in Swiss secondary schools (n = 366). Baseline and one-month follow-up data were used to validate the scale. The main measure was an initial 14-item perceived suicide awareness scale (PSAS). Perceived knowledge of help-seeking resources, suicide-related knowledge, and support networks were used to assess convergent validity.

RESULTS

A nine-item version, the PSAS-9, showed satisfactory psychometric properties, including high internal consistency (α = 0.78), acceptable test-retest (r = 0.68), and a one-factor structure explaining 95 % of the variance. The convergent validity was acceptable (0.19 ≤ r ≤ 0.40). The PSAS-9 was not correlated with suicide-related knowledge (r = 0.02).

LIMITATIONS

The study missed a similar construct to properly assess convergent validity and had a modest sample size. In addition, it only included secondary school adolescents, so further research in other samples of youths is needed to robustly validate the PSAS-9.

CONCLUSIONS

This study was an important step towards validating a perceived suicide awareness scale, which appears as a new dimension of suicidality, distinct from suicide-related knowledge. The PSAS-9 could be used to develop, evaluate, and improve suicide prevention efforts.

Item Type:

Journal Article (Original Article)

Division/Institute:

04 Faculty of Medicine > Medical Education > Institute of General Practice and Primary Care (BIHAM)

UniBE Contributor:

Baggio, Stéphanie

Subjects:

600 Technology > 610 Medicine & health
300 Social sciences, sociology & anthropology > 360 Social problems & social services

ISSN:

0165-0327

Publisher:

Elsevier

Funders:

[202] Health Promotion Switzerland = Gesundheitsförderung Schweiz

Language:

English

Submitter:

Pubmed Import

Date Deposited:

05 Mar 2024 08:37

Last Modified:

10 Apr 2024 11:48

Publisher DOI:

10.1016/j.jad.2024.02.062

PubMed ID:

38387669

Uncontrolled Keywords:

Adolescents Mental health Primary prevention Psychometrics Suicide Suicide awareness

BORIS DOI:

10.48350/193191

URI:

https://boris.unibe.ch/id/eprint/193191

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