Relationship Between Academic Stress and Suicidal Ideation: Testing for Depression as a Mediator Using Multiple Regression

Relations among academic stress, depression, & suicide ideation were examined among 1108 adolescents, age 12-18, in a Singapore secondary school. The prediction that adolescent depression mediated the relationship between academic stress & suicide ideation in a 4-step process was tested. The previously significant relationship between academic stress & suicide ideation was significantly reduced in magnitude when depression was included in the model providing evidence in this sample that adolescent depression was a partial mediator. The applied & practical implications for intervention & prevention work in schools are discussed.