Evaluation of knowledge level about suicide and stigmatizing attitudes in university students toward people who commit suicide

Özet

Objectives: This study was planned as a descriptive research with the aim to analyze university students’ level of knowledge and stigmatizing attitudes toward people who have committed suicide.Methods: Research was conducted among university students (n=1100). Students’ stigmatizing attitudes toward suicides and level of knowledge about suicide were assessed using the Stigma of Suicide Scale (SOSS) and Literacy ofSuicide Scale (LOSS). The Student Information Form was used to collect information about students’ age, gender, andmarital status, a history of previous psychiatric support or psychological consultation services, and suicidal ideation orsuicide attempts.Results: Students who had previously had a psychiatric consultation or received a psychiatric diagnosis obtained ahigher average of statistically significant LOSS scores compared to students who had not received psychiatric support(p=0.001). Students who had had suicidal ideation or suicide attempts in the past had a higher average of statisticallysignificant LOSS scores compared to students who had not thought about or attempted suicide (p=0.001). Studentswho reported a history of suicidal ideation or suicide attempts had higher statistically significant average scores onthe Glorification/Normalization subscale compared to students who had not reported a history of thoughts about orattempted suicide (p=0.001), and their Stigma subscale score average was lower (p=0.001). Students’ LOSS scores had anegative statistically significant relationship with SOSS’ Stigma subscale averages (r=-0.101; p=0.001).Conclusion: Prevention of suicide attempts is an important public health problem; psychoeducational activities foruniversity students need to be developed that include messages aimed both at increasing knowledge of suicide andreducing students’ stigmatizing attitudes toward suicide. Developing trainings for increasing awareness about thewarning signs of suicide by community mental health nurses, specialist psychiatric nurses, or school psychologists iseffective for suicide prevention.