Impulsivity and Hopelessness as Predictors of Suicide-Related Ideation Among Older Adults

A sample of 117 older adults was recruited from multiple sources in Vancouver, British Columbia over a 1-year period. Suicide-related ideation was measured with the Geriatric Suicide Ideation Scale. Canonical correlation identified 2 pairings of linear composites in which impulsivity emerged along both as significantly associated with facets of suicide-related ideation. The greater proportion of variance in impulsivity was subsumed along the second set of vectors with somatic depressive symptoms. Findings suggest the impulse to self-harm may be even more pronounced among older adults less likely to present as typically depressed. It is further suggested that impulsivity is more broadly associated with suicide-related ideation than hopelessness. (39 refs.)