Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, Vol 55, Issue 1 P18-P26, Copyright © 2000 by The Gerontological Society of America
Personality traits and suicidal behavior and ideation in depressed inpatients 50 years of age and older
PR Duberstein, Y Conwell, L Seidlitz, DG Denning, C Cox and ED Caine
University of Rochester Medical Center, New York, USA. [email protected]
Completed suicide may be the most preventable lethal complication of
depressive disorders in older adults. Identification of risk factors for
suicidal behavior has therefore become a major public health priority.
Using data collected on 81 depressed patients 50 years of age and older, we
report analyses designed to determine the associations between the
personality traits that constitute the Five Factor Model of personality and
measures of suicidal behavior and ideation. We hypothesized that low
Extraversion would be associated with a lifetime history of attempted
suicide, and high Neuroticism would be associated with suicidal ideation.
Results were generally consistent with the hypotheses. We also observed a
relationship between Openness to Experience and suicidal ideation. These
findings suggest that longstanding patterns of behaving, thinking, and
feeling contribute to suicidal behavior and thoughts in older adults and
highlight the need to consider personality traits in crafting and targeting
prevention strategies.
