Suicide and related health riks behaviours among school learners in South Africa: results from the 2002 and 2008 national youth riks behaviour surveys
SOURCE: BMC Public Health
OUTPUT TYPE: Journal Article
PUBLICATION YEAR: 2013
TITLE AUTHOR(S): H.N.Shilubane, R.A.C.Ruiter, B.Van den Borne, R.Sewpaul, S.James, P.S.Reddy
KEYWORDS: RISK BEHAVIOUR, SCHOOL CHILDREN, SUICIDE, YOUTH
Print: HSRC Library: shelf number 8165
HANDLE: 20.500.11910/2488
URI: http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11910/2488
OUTPUT TYPE: Journal Article
PUBLICATION YEAR: 2013
TITLE AUTHOR(S): H.N.Shilubane, R.A.C.Ruiter, B.Van den Borne, R.Sewpaul, S.James, P.S.Reddy
KEYWORDS: RISK BEHAVIOUR, SCHOOL CHILDREN, SUICIDE, YOUTH
Print: HSRC Library: shelf number 8165
HANDLE: 20.500.11910/2488
URI: http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11910/2488
If you would like to obtain a copy of this Research Output, please contact Hanlie Baudin at researchoutputs@hsrc.ac.za.
Abstract
Attempted and completed suicide constitute a major public health problem among young people world-wide, including South Africa (SA). Suicide attempt and completed suicide increase during the adolescent period. One in 5 adolescents considers attempting suicide, but statistics are frequently unreliable. Data for this study were derived from the 2002 and 2008 South African Youth Risk Behaviour Surveys (YRBS). The study population comprised grades 8, 9, 10 and 11 students in governmental schools in the nine provinces of SA (N = 10,699 in 2002 and 10,270 in 2008). Key outcome measures were suicide ideation and suicide attempts. Of the total sample, 18% of the students in 2002 and 19% in 2008 reported to have seriously considered and/or made a plan to commit suicide during the past six months (Suicide ideation), whereas 18.5% of students in 2002 and 21.8% in 2008 reported that they had attempted suicide at least 1 time during the past six months. On both suicide measures girls have higher prevalence scores than boys, and older school learners score higher than younger learners. In addition, 32% of the learners reported feelings of sadness or hopelessness. These feelings contributed significantly to the explanation of suicide ideation and suicide attempt next to being the victim or actor in violent acts and illegal substance use. The prevalence of suicide ideation and suicide attempts among South African adolescents is high and seems to be influenced by a wide spectrum of factors at the demographic, psychological and behavioural level. Hence, more research is needed to determine the behavioural and psychological determinants of suicide among youngsters in order to develop comprehensive intervention strategies for suicide prevention and care.-
Related Research Outputs:
- Drug involvement among secondary school students at suicide risk in Cape Town
- Risk group or group at risk
- Suicidal behaviour and related risk factors among school-aged youth in the Republic of Benin
- What's love got to do with it?: love as a discursive resource in young South Africans' talk about (hetero)sexual negotiation
- Suicidal ideation and associated factors among students aged 13-15 years in Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) member states, 2007-2013
- Youth violence risk assessment: gaps in local knowledge and directions for future research
- Rapid appraisal of substance abuse and HIV awareness messages in poster communication to disadvantaged youth in South Africa
- Building protective factors to offset sexually risky behaviors among black South African youth: a randomized control trial
- Youth voices about sex and AIDS: implications for life skills education through the 'Learning Together' project in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
- School drop-outs and imprisoned youths
- Correlates of suicide risk among secondary school students in Cape Town
- Building protective factors to offset sexually risky behaviors among black youths: a randomized control trial
- Age-disparate and intergenerational sex in southern Africa: the dynamics of hypervulnerability
- South African national HIV prevalence, incidence, behaviour and communication survey, 2008: a turning tide among teenagers?
- Behaviour changes in sexual behavioural practices among South African youth
- 'Die mense sal dit nog aanvaar': perceptions of teenage pregnancy in South Africa
- Teenage tata: young fathers take responsibility
- Innovative mobilization strategies for attracting at risk youth and young adults to participate in community-based voluntary counselling and testing in rural Kwa-Zulu Natal, South Africa (Project Accept - HPTN 043)
- HIV and youth: a behavioural perspective
- The state of youth in South Africa: trends in education attainment