Publication Date
5-2024
Advisor(s) - Committee Chair
Sarah Bonis, Carl Myers, Sharon Blevins
Degree Program
Department of Psychology
Degree Type
Specialist Project
Abstract
Suicide is a leading cause of death for people aged 10 to 24. Suicide risk screeners are designed to assess the presence of suicidal ideation and behaviors, with the goal of preventing suicide. While these screenings can be effective for the general population, individuals with ADHD and Autism Spectrum Disorders present a variety of cognitive differences which may make screenings intended for general population less effective for these special populations. The purpose of this study was to review the literature on suicide risk assessment in populations with ASD and ADHD, determine prevalent issues with assessing risk in each population, and compile the recommendations for best practice in risk assessment in these populations. A total of thirteen articles between the years of 2007 and 2023 were included. These articles were coded for demographics information and answers to the research questions. The results showed that many articles failed to properly identify the validity of the measures they used, with several articles opting for non-validated screeners or questions derived by the researcher for the purposes of answering their research questions. Other articles discouraged this practice and promoted the use of validated measures in both future research and clinical practice. While no measure validated for the general population has been fully validated for use in ADHD or ASD populations, it was demonstrated that the most successful screenings utilized a combination of self-report and clinician ratings. Recommendations for future research and clinical practice are discussed.
Disciplines
Child Psychology | Education | Psychology | Social and Behavioral Sciences
Recommended Citation
Wright, Alexander, "A REVIEW OF SUICIDE RISK ASSESSMENT PROCEDURES IN AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER AND ATTENTION DEFICIT HYPERACTIVITY DISORDER" (2024). Masters Theses & Specialist Projects. Paper 3729.
https://digitalcommons.wku.edu/theses/3729