Fluctuating Risk Factors of Suicide Among Adolescent African-Americans

Typically, African-Americans are thought to be insulated from suicide however, recent data indicates that the rates of suicide among African-American adolescents have dramatically increased. Despite this alarming increase not much is known about the correlates of African-American Adolsecent suicide. This is largely because the relationship between suicidality and developmental process has not been studied in general let alone among African-American adolescents. The focus of this study is the degree to which suicidal ideation and it's correlates—risk and protective factors—change through early, middle and late adolescence. To explore this is we examine developmental changes in both individuals and groups. Data from the Mobile Youth Survey (MYS) a sample of Low-Income, African-American, adolescents in Mobile, AL, ages 9-19 are analyzed. Longitudinal, latent growth curve analysis will be performed. Variables of interest are hopelessness,alcohol and drug use, family structure, sexual behavior, self-esteem, peer influence and violence and victimization.