Reducing suicidal ideation in African American adolescents: A randomized controlled clinical trial

OBJECTIVE: Suicide rates among African American adolescents have increased exponentially in recent years. The socioecological stressors that can increase suicide risk for African American adolescents, in conjunction with unique suicide risk manifestations within this group, require culturally sensitive preventive interventions. This study examines the efficacy of the Adapted-Coping With Stress course (A-CWS), a culturally tailored preventive intervention, to reduce suicidal ideation in African American adolescents, utilizing a randomized controlled design. METHOD: Participants included 410 ninth-grade students in a large Midwestern city; most students identified as Black/African American. Participants were randomly assigned to either the A-CWS intervention or standard care control condition. All participants were assessed at baseline, immediately postintervention, and 6 and 12 months postintervention. RESULTS: Treatment effects were examined using latent growth models comparing suicidal ideation trajectories in control and intervention conditions. Analyses were conducted using both intention-to-treat and treatment-as-received samples (i.e., intervention condition participants who attended at least 80% of sessions). In both intention-to-treat and treatment-as-received analyses, there was a significant treatment effect: Individuals in the A-CWS intervention condition with higher baseline ideation evidenced a superior reduction in suicidal ideation over the course of the study, relative to their counterparts in the standard care control condition. CONCLUSION: Findings indicate that the A-CWS preventive intervention is efficacious in reducing suicidal ideation among African American adolescents with higher levels of baseline suicidal ideation and that effects sustain over time, with the strongest effect evidenced 12 months postintervention. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

© American Psychological Association, 2024-02-01. This paper is not the copy of record and may not exactly replicate the authoritative document published in the APA journal. Please do not copy or cite without author's permission. The final article is available, upon publication, at: https://doi.org/10.1037/ccp0000849

Files

Metadata

Work Title Reducing suicidal ideation in African American adolescents: A randomized controlled clinical trial
Access
Open Access
Creators
  1. W. LaVome Robinson
  2. Christopher R. Whipple
  3. Kate Keenan
  4. Caleb E. Flack
  5. Sally Lemke
  6. Leonard A. Jason
License In Copyright (Rights Reserved)
Work Type Article
Publisher
  1. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology
Publication Date February 1, 2024
Publisher Identifier (DOI)
  1. https://doi.org/10.1037/ccp0000849
Deposited April 19, 2024

Versions

Analytics

Collections

This resource is currently not in any collection.

Work History

Version 1
published

  • Created
  • Added SI_Outcomes_Accepted_Version.pdf
  • Added Creator W. La Vome Robinson
  • Added Creator Christopher R. Whipple
  • Added Creator Kate Keenan
  • Added Creator Caleb E. Flack
  • Added Creator Sally Lemke
  • Added Creator Leonard A. Jason
  • Published
  • Updated
  • Updated Publisher Show Changes
    Publisher
    • Journal of Consulting Psychology
    • Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology
  • Renamed Creator W. LaVome Robinson Show Changes
    • W. La Vome Robinson
    • W. LaVome Robinson