Participation in a daily diary study about suicide ideation yields no iatrogenic effects: A mixed method analysis.

Introduction: Despite evidence that participation in suicide research is not associated with worsening ideation, behaviors, or intent, the rise of intensive longitudinal methods to assess ideation and behaviors necessitates further investigation for potential iatrogenic effects. The present study assessed rates of change in suicide ideation (SI) in a 10-day daily diary study.

Methods: Seventy-two adult participants with ongoing SI participated in 10 daily diary surveys and three follow-up assessments. One open-ended item was included to address participant experiences in the study.

Results: A multilevel piecewise growth model revealed steady declines in SI for participants over the 10 days. However, rates of SI increased during the follow-up assessments, indicating that participation in the daily surveys was associated with general reductions in SI. Further, qualitative analyses of experiences in the study revealed the following themes: Useful (n = 34), Heightened Awareness (n = 21), Functional (n = 6), Not Useful (n = 6), and Beneficence (n = 4).

Conclusion: This study demonstrated that participation in suicide research, including intensive longitudinal methods such as daily diary studies, did not have iatrogenic effects on participants with SI. Qualitative results demonstrated the numerous benefits participants derived while taking part in this study.