Validation of the German capability for suicide questionnaire (GCSQ) in a high-risk sample of suicidal inpatients
Cwik, J.C., Forkmann, T., Glaesmer, H., Paashaus, L., Schonfelder, A., Rath, D., ... Teismann, T.
The German Capability for Suicide Questionnaire (GCSQ) was developed to measure fearlessness of death and pain tolerance – two constructs central to the Interpersonal Theory of Suicide. Initial scale development, definition of the factor structure and confirmation of the two-dimensional factor structure was performed in samples suffering from relatively low levels of suicide ideation/behavior. The present study aimed to validate the German Capability for Suicide Questionnaire (GCSQ) in a high-risk sample of suicidal inpatients.
Methods
Factor structure, reliability and validity were investigated in a sample of inpatients (N = 296; 53.0% female; age in years: M = 36.81, SD = 14.27) admitted to a hospital due to a recent suicide attempt or an acute suicidal crisis (in immediate need of inpatient treatment). To establish convergent validity, interview-based assessments of lifetime suicide attempts and non-suicidal self-injury as well as questionnaire-based assessments of painful and provocative events were used. Finally, stability of GCSQ-scores over a follow-up period of 12 months was assessed.
Results
Results indicated good psychometric properties, and provided additional evidence for construct validity and stability of the subscales over a one-year period, and demonstrated adequate fit of the data with respect to the original factor structure.
Conclusions
Results suggest that the GCSQ is a brief, reliable, and valid measure of capability for suicide that can be used in clinic assessment and research.