Characteristics of Recent Suicide Attempts by Inmates in Maximum Security Correctional Centers

Examined inmates’ subjective perceptions of reasons for suicide attempts & the psychological, sociological & criminological factors associated with such attempts. Results showed two groups: those who had made a non-life-threatening (NLT) suicide attempt (58%) & those who had made a life-threatening (LT) attempt (42%). Several factors significantly differentiated NLT & LT groups. Four of these factors were combined in regression models to clarify the relationships between the variables & to predict, whether an inmate had made a NLT or LT suicide attempt. (34 refs)