Emotion reactivity, parent-child conflict resolution, and suicide ideation: Longitudinal study of adolescents recruited between 2017 and 2023 in the northeastern United States.

Abstract

Background: Parental relationships should be considered in models of suicide risk among adolescents. Studies have shown that negative parent-child interactions contribute significantly to adolescent suicide ideation (SI) and attempts, while positive parental relationship dynamics can protect against suicidal thoughts and behaviors. Given the known association between emotion reactivity and SI in youth, we hypothesized that parent-child conflict resolution would moderate this pathway by weakening this link. This is the first longitudinal study of adolescent SI, of which we are aware, to examine the interaction between the parental relationship and emotion reactivity in a clinical sample of ethnoracially and socioeconomically diverse teenagers.

Methods: Participants were adolescents (N = 106; 86 female; 84 Hispanic/Latine), ages 12-19, with recent SI or an attempt recruited from hospitals and clinics in the Northeastern United States between 2017 and 2023. Adolescents reported on parent-child interaction quality, emotion reactivity, and severity of their SI at baseline and on their SI severity 3 months later. Moderation was examined via linear regression analysis.

Results: Emotion reactivity predicted greater 3-month SI, b = 0.18, SE = 0.07, p < .01, but parent-child conflict resolution did not moderate this relation.

Conclusion: These findings reinforce the importance of addressing emotion reactivity in clinical assessment and intervention to reduce SI severity. Addressing parent-child conflict resolution may not be sufficient to impact the association between emotion reactivity and SI severity among adolescents who present to hospitals following SI or an attempt without consideration of other culturally related factors that impact the parent-adolescent relationship among ethnoracially diverse adolescents.