The association between suicide risk and self-esteem in Japanese university students with major depressive episodes of major depressive disorder

BACKGROUND: The suicide risk among young adults is related to multiple factors; therefore, it is difficult to predict and prevent suicidal behavior. AIM: We conducted the present study to reveal the most important factors relating to suicidal ideation in Japanese university students with major depressive episodes (MDEs) of major depressive disorder (MDD). METHODS: The subjects were 30 Japanese university students who had MDEs of MDD, and were aged between 18 and 26 years old. They were divided into two groups – without suicide risk group (n=15), and with suicide risk group (n=15) – based on the results of the Mini-International Neuropsychiatric Interview. Additionally, healthy controls were recruited from the same population (n=15). All subjects completed the self-assessment scales including the Beck Depression Inventory 2nd edition (BDI-II), the Beck Hopelessness Scale (BHS), Rosenberg’s Self-Esteem Scale (RSES), and SF-36v2™ (The Medical Outcomes Study 36-item short-form health survey version 2), and they were all administered a battery of neuropsychological tests. RESULTS: The RSES score of the suicide risk group was significantly lower than the RSES score of the without suicide risk group, whereas the BDI-II score and the BHS score were not significantly different between the two groups. The mean social functioning score on the SF-36v2 of the with suicide risk group was significantly lower than that of the without suicide risk group. CONCLUSION: The individual’s self-esteem and social functioning may play an important role in suicide risk among young adults with MDEs of MDD.