College Student Suicide Risk: The Relationship between Alexithymia, Impulsivity, and Internal Locus of Control

Abstract

Suicide has become the second leading cause of death for individuals between 15 and 29 years old and increasingly more common within college students (WHO, 2016). The purpose of this study was to examine the associations among alexithymia, impulsivity, and locus of control as predictors of suicide risk in college students. Participants were comprised of 550 undergraduate students from two universities in the southeastern United States. Multiple regression analyses were examined to evaluate what variables could be significant predictors of suicide risk in college students. Age, alexithymia subscales of difficulty identifying feelings and externally oriented thinking, and impulsivity subscales of motor, self-control, and nonplanning were considered significant in the regression analysis of suicide risk. Psychoeducational implications, limitations, and future directions are also discussed.