Recipients of Suicide-Related Disclosure: The Link between Disclosure and Posttraumatic Growth for Suicide Attempt Survivors

Laura M. Frey, Christopher W. Drapeau, Anthony Fulginiti, Nathalie Oexle, Dese’Rae L. Stage, Lindsay Sheehan, Julie Cerel and Melinda Moore
Additional contact information
Laura M. Frey: Couple & Family Therapy Program, Kent School of Social Work, 136A Burhans Hall, Shelby Campus, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY 40292, USA
Christopher W. Drapeau: Department of Education, Valparaiso University, Valparaiso, IN 46383, USA
Anthony Fulginiti: Graduate School of Social Work, University of Denver, Denver, CO 80208, USA
Nathalie Oexle: Department of Psychiatry II, Ulm University and BKH Günzburg, Baden-Württemberg, 89081 Ulm, Germany
Dese’Rae L. Stage: Live Through This, Philadelphia, PA, USA
Lindsay Sheehan: Lewis College of Human Sciences, Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago, IL 60616, USA
Julie Cerel: College of social Work, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40506, USA
Melinda Moore: Department of Psychology, Eastern Kentucky University, Richmond, KY 40475, USA

IJERPH, 2019, vol. 16, issue 20, 1-14

Abstract: It is important to explore factors that could help or hinder one’s wellbeing following a suicide attempt, which could yield not only negative consequences but also posttraumatic growth (PTG; positive changes following a traumatic event). The present study used a multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) to test the relationship between disclosure, PTG, and posttraumatic depreciation among suicide attempt survivors when controlling for time since attempt and to test whether these effects remained after controlling for quality of support from family and friends. Suicide attempt survivors ( n = 159) completed an online survey about their experiences. Increases in disclosure to family and friends but not to healthcare providers predicted changes in PTG. The effects of family disclosure remained even after controlling for quality of support. Disclosure to healthcare providers demonstrated some statistical effects on PTG, yet in the opposite direction and only after controlling for quality of support. The control variables—time since attempt and quality of support—were the only variables that predicted a change in posttraumatic depreciation. These findings suggest there is value in disclosing one’s personal story to family regardless of whether one receives supportive responses and that social support can impact one’s PTG.

Keywords: family dynamics; lived experience; posttraumatic growth; suicide disclosure; suicide prevention (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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