Resource Tag: PEER SUPPORT

This booklet is for facilitators of suicide loss support groups. Hopefully it will be of value to both new and experienced facilitators, but it cannot address every situation that you may encounter. It is best used in a training where discussion can clarify and expand upon the material given herein. It draws on the experience […]

Background: Better Off With You is a peer-to-peer, digital suicide prevention campaign pilot designed to challenge the idea of perceived burdensomeness; the schema experienced by many people contemplating suicide that they are a burden on others. Aims: To investigate the safety, acceptability, and initial effectiveness of the campaign. Method: This mixed methods pilot involved a general community sample (N = 157), from […]

Self help is self-guided improvement. Some of the potential benefits of self-help groups that more professional supports may not provide include knowledge of lived experience, shared identity, meaningful contribution to others, and a sense of  belonging. Self help often utilizes publicly available information, or support groups on the Internet, as well as in person where […]

Survivors of Suicide (SOS) is a support group for bereaved family members and close friends of suicide victims. The group provides a safe place for survivors to support one another as they deal with the painful questions and feelings that follow suicide.  Bereavement after suicide is a profoundly difficult and complex experience. The stigma of […]

Based on the notion of mutual aid, a conceptual framework for understanding how membership in a group benefits survivors of trauma is presented. Incorporating current research and theory, this article discusses distinguishing features of these groups, as well as professional challenges social workers are likely to face in facilitating them.

This two-part report examines important aspects of survivor of suicide support groups: some of the motivating factors attracting survivors to join these groups and why many withdraw as time after a loss passes. From a variety of data sources, including survey data collected from 462 parents losing a child to suicide, participant observation data (collected […]

Background: Every year, more than six million people lose a loved one through suicide. These bereaved by suicide are at relatively high risk for mental illnesses including suicide. The social stigma attached to suicide often makes it difficult to talk about grief. Participating in online forums may be beneficial for the bereaved by suicide, but it […]

Background: Suicide prevention is a major challenge for penal institutions in many countries. The traditional approach relies on the expertise of health professionals and is supplemented by the intervention of other professionals and the inmates themselves. New methods of suicide prevention based on peer support have been developed in recent years. Peer prevention programs rely on […]

Background: Suicidal young adults often confide their distress to peers. It is unclear, however, what types of assistance a friend may offer in response to various symptoms of distress as well as whether the sex of either individual affects responses. Aims: We examined open-ended responses to e-mail vignettes from a fictitious friend exhibiting depressed, irritable, or overtly […]

Suicide can have a significant impact on the bereaved. Peer support groups for suicide bereavement have been shown to enhance the wellbeing of those attending. However, research is lacking on the mechanisms that underlie these benefits. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 12 adults attending peer-facilitated support groups in Ireland and thematic analysis was used. The […]

Background: “A person’s death is not only an ending: it is also a beginning – for the survivors. Indeed, in the case of suicide, the largest public health problem is neither the prevention of suicide (…), nor the management of attempts (…), but the alleviation of the effects of stress in the survivor-victims of suicidal deaths, […]

Background: Despite numerous studies that have assessed emotional reactions of people bereaved by suicide, many questions in this field are not yet clarified. Aims: The purpose of the present study was to explore how emotional reactions of those bereaved by suicide depend on their gender, the relationship to the deceased, the consequences (“only negative,” “negative and positive,” […]

Objectives: The aims of this study were to assess evidence for a novel, universal mental health literacy programme in the school setting (teen Mental Health First Aid) as an intervention to improve peer support towards adolescents at risk of suicide and to examine whether participation in a school-based programme dealing with suicide was distressing to […]

Suicide is a major public health issue affecting countless people each year worldwide. Support groups are one of the few resources available to survivors of suicide loss to aid the healing journey. This study examined differences among support group facilitators based on status as a peer, professional, or peer/professional. Differences emerged among the facilitator types, […]

Objective: The current study evaluated the long-term effectiveness of a peer delivered suicide prevention gatekeeper training program for college students. Participants: 1,345 undergraduate students (Mage = 20.24, SD = 3.27; 89.6% White) received the peer led training during a single class-period. Method: Participants completed pre- post- and 3-month follow-up surveys assessing knowledge, perceived intervention skills, […]

The risk for future suicidal behaviours is elevated following suicide attempts, particularly for those with complex needs or those who are disconnected from healthcare systems. The PAUSE program was designed to address this gap using peer workers to provide continuity and coordination of care following suicide-related emergency presentations. This study aimed to evaluate the pilot […]

Suicide prevention is a public health priority. The purpose of this study was to elicit and document the perspectives of youth (ages 15–24) on the development of a peer support model for mental health promotion and suicide prevention for youth in small communities in western Canada. A qualitative descriptive approach informed by a socioecological framework […]

Observing that the emergency department (ED) is an important site for suicide prevention efforts and noting that safety planning has been identified as a best practice for suicide prevention among ED patients at increased suicide risk, researchers have embarked on first-time research examining such efforts.

Objective Prior research has found disclosure of concealable stigmatized statuses, including suicide attempt survivorship, to be associated with positive mental health outcomes. This study sought to test the mediating effect of self-reported social support on the association between disclosure of suicide attempt and suicide risk factors in a sample of undergraduate college students. Method Data […]

Objective The purpose of this study was to develop a conceptual model of community-based veteran peer suicide prevention. Method We conducted a qualitative study in which semi-structured interviews were followed by three focus groups. Participants (n = 17) were chosen from community-based organizations who had peers working on veteran suicide prevention; the sample included veteran peers, non-peers, […]

Objective To assist suicidal individuals, people in their social network are often directed to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (Lifeline). The study’s objective was to provide information on third-party calls made out of concern for another person. Method Reports on 172 third-party calls concerning individuals deemed to be at imminent suicide risk were completed by […]

Background Prior studies have mostly focused on the risk factors for nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI), but only a few studies have emphasized the related protective factors. The present study examined whether maltreatment and behavioral problems were risk factors for NSSI. Moreover, we also sought to understand whether and how friend support provides a buffer against NSSI. […]

Introduction Suicidal ideation (SI) and attempts (SA) are prevalent in late adolescence and emerging adulthood. Prior research has identified perceived support as a correlate of SI and SA. Less is known, though, about the role of perceived support in differentiating among suicidal outcomes and between the incremental escalation of suicidal outcomes from SI to SA […]