Suicide Attempts and Suicidal Ideation in a Birth Cohort of 16-Year-Old New Zealanders

Data were gathered on suicide attempts, suicidal ideation, psychiatric diagnoses, adjustment problems & childhood factors in a 16-year longitudinal study of a birth cohort of New Zealand children. 12% of the cohort reported suicidal ideation before the age of 16 years & 3% attempted suicide. The extent to which suicidal tendencies were expressed varied with the extent to which the subjects met the criteria for psychiatric disorder, the extent of adjustment problems & adverse childhood events.