Correlation between Family Environment and Suicidal Ideation in University Students in China

Hui Zhai, Bing Bai, Lu Chen, Dong Han, Lin Wang, Zhengxue Qiao, Xiaohui Qiu, Xiuxian Yang and Yanjie Yang
Additional contact information
Hui Zhai: Department of Medical Psychology, Public Health Institute of Harbin Medical University, Harbin 150081, China
Bing Bai: Department of Cardiology, First Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Harbin 150081, China
Lu Chen: Department of Endocrinology, Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Beijing 100730, China
Dong Han: Department of Medical Psychology, Public Health Institute of Harbin Medical University, Harbin 150081, China
Lin Wang: Department of Medical Psychology, Public Health Institute of Harbin Medical University, Harbin 150081, China
Zhengxue Qiao: Department of Medical Psychology, Public Health Institute of Harbin Medical University, Harbin 150081, China
Xiaohui Qiu: Department of Medical Psychology, Public Health Institute of Harbin Medical University, Harbin 150081, China
Xiuxian Yang: Department of Medical Psychology, Public Health Institute of Harbin Medical University, Harbin 150081, China
Yanjie Yang: Department of Medical Psychology, Public Health Institute of Harbin Medical University, Harbin 150081, China

IJERPH, 2015, vol. 12, issue 2, 1-13

Abstract: Background : This study investigated the association between suicidal ideation and family environment. The sample included 5183 Chinese university students. A number of studies on suicidal ideation have focused on individuals rather than families. This paper reviews the general principles of suicidal ideation and the consequences resulting from the family environment. Methods : This study used six different colleges as the dataset, which included 2645 males and 2538 females. Students were questioned with respect to social demographics and suicidal ideation factors. The data were analyzed with factor and logistic analyses to determine the association between suicidal ideation and poor family environment. Results : The prevalence of suicidal ideation was 9.2% (476/5183). Most participants with suicidal ideation had significant similarities: they had poor family structures and relationships, their parents had unstable work, and their parents used improper parenting styles. Female students were more likely to have suicidal thoughts than male students. Conclusions : This study shows that suicidal ideation is a public health issue among Chinese university students and demonstrates the importance of considering the family environment when examining university students’ suicidal ideation. Understanding family-related suicidal ideation risk factors can help to predict and prevent suicides among university students.

Keywords: China; university students; family environment; suicidal ideation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2015
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/12/2/1412/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/12/2/1412/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:12:y:2015:i:2:p:1412-1424:d:45150

Access Statistics for this article

IJERPH is currently edited by Ms. Jenna Liu

More articles in IJERPH from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().