Machiavellianism and suicide risk in adolescent earthquake survivors: Dual effects via fear of injury/death and posttraumatic stress symptoms

Abstract

Suicide is common among adolescents following natural disasters, and negative personality traits have been identified as risk factors for suicide. However, few studies have adopted a life history perspective to examine the relationships between Machiavellianism, trauma-related emotions, psychopathology, and their associations with suicide risk in adolescent survivors. We surveyed 508 adolescents (266 females [52.4 %]; M_age = 14.09 [SD = 1.53]) three and a half years after the Ya'an earthquake. We surveyed Machiavellianism, fear, and posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) at baseline, and surveyed suicide risk at both baseline and one-year follow-up. The results indicated that Machiavellianism was positively associated with suicide risk via the simple mediation of fear of injury/death and PTSS, respectively. Moreover, Machiavellianism showed a negative association with suicide risk through the serial mediation of fear of injury/death and PTSS. Specifically, these effects primarily operate through the intrusion and hyperarousal clusters. In summary, Machiavellianism showed dual effects on suicide risk in adolescent earthquake survivors. This study provides new insights for identifying and intervening the suicide risk in adolescents following natural disasters.