SUICIDAL CHILDREN GROW UP - RELATIONS BETWEEN FAMILY PSYCHOPATHOLOGY AND ADOLESCENTS LIFETIME SUICIDAL-BEHAVIOR

Standard family history and family study methods were used with 650 fi rst- and 1174 second-degree biological relatives of 133 adolescents wh o were studied initially 6 to 8 years ago. They included 69 prepuberta l children considered at risk for suicidal behavior and 64 prepubertal children selected from the community. This study aimed to identify re lationships between family psychopathology and adolescents' lifetime h istory of suicidal states. Family discord, suicide attempts of mother, and substance abuse of mothers and fathers were significantly more pr evalent among adolescents with lifetime history of a suicide attempt. Mothers' and fathers' substance abuse was associated with adolescents' lifetime history of suicidal ideation. Results highlight importance o f evaluating and treating family psychopathology to reduce risk for yo uth suicidal states.