The Development and Initial Validation of the Geriatric Suicide Ideation Scale

The authors report on the development & initial validation of the Geriatric Suicide Ideation Scale. Study 1 involved development of an initial 66-item measure, administration to a heterogeneous sample of 172 adults, 65 years & older, assessment of the measure’s factor structure, & subsequent scale reduction & correlation with social desirability. Study 2 involved validation of the reduced scale with a new sample of 107 older adults & psychometric assessment of the measure’s reliablity & initial validity. Findings support the use of the scale’s subscales as standalone measures of late-life suicide risk & psychological resilience. (34 refs.) JA