Assessing relations between psychological closeness to suicide methods and suicide risk in a community sample: A replication study.

Approximately 700,000 individuals die from suicide each year, highlighting the need to identify factors that may predict or prevent suicidal behaviors. Previous literature suggests psychological closeness to suicide methods may significantly predict suicidal intent and behaviors, particularly among high-risk populations. However, research has yet to investigate the relationship between psychological closeness to suicide methods and suicide among individuals with lower severity of suicidal ideation and using a set of robust suicide-related covariates. A sample of 315 adults with current suicidal ideation (M_age = 21.12, SD = 12.13, 52% cisgender men, 73% White, 67% heterosexual/straight) were recruited from Prolific to complete an online survey. Results from a hierarchical regression indicated that psychological closeness to suicide methods was uniquely related to suicide risk, above and beyond physical closeness to these methods, sociodemographic characteristics, and other clinical covariates. Our study replicated and extended past findings, further supporting the potential utility of assessing and intervening on psychological closeness to suicide methods in both research and clinical settings.