Cultural Factors and the Interpersonal Psychological Theory of Suicide

Abstract: Over 20% of global suicide deaths occur in India, with young adults in college representing a high-risk group. Guided by the Interpersonal Psychological Theory of Suicide, prior research demonstrates that thwarted belongingness (TB) and perceived burdensomeness (PB) are associated with increased suicide risk in Indian college students. Potential cultural factors that may strengthen or weaken this relationship have not been investigated. In this study, the influence of two culturally relevant moderators was examined: (1) collectivism and (2) inclusion of others in the self. College students from Northern India ( N = 194, 58% women, M _age = 20.23 years) completed self-report questionnaires. Across bivariate and regression models, greater inclusion of mother in one’s self was associated with lower ideation duration whereas greater inclusion of romantic partner in one’s self was associated with higher ideation duration. In addition, findings indicated that inclusion of father in one’s self moderated the association between PB and suicidal ideation duration such that, at high levels of inclusion of father in one’s self, PB was positively associated with suicidal ideation duration, and, at low levels, the PB–ideation association was nonsignificant. For Indian college students, differential associations between relationship domains and their inclusion in one’s self-construal highlight the importance of examining specific relational dynamics in understanding risk, along with further contextualizing the relationship between PB and suicide risk.