Risk and protective factors for propensity for suicide among British Columbia First Nations adolescents using the Adolescent Health Survey - Abstract

Abstract

Turner, R.A. (1999). Risk and protective factors for propensity for suicide among British Columbia First Nations adolescents using the Adolescent Health Survey. Dissertation in fulfillment of the requirements for PhD. in Clinical Psychology Abstract: The majority of research on resilience, or risk and protective factors that predict or prevent a particular maladaptive behaviour among adolescents, does not identify cultural or ethnic variables. Of the existing studies that include ethnicity as a factor, many are based on American samples. The present study explores factors (e.g. depression, substance use, parental support, self-appraisal) that predict and prevent a particular maladaptive behaviour – propensity for suicide- among a large sample of Canadian minority adolescents, specifically the British Columbian First Nations youth. The study also aims to determine the extent to which factors contribute to high or low propensity for suicide, and whether these findings differ from those for non-First Nations youth.