About This Project

Suicide is a leading cause of death among young adults globally. Research indicates that the childhood emotional environment plays a crucial role in shaping mental health outcomes in later life. However, the specific mechanisms through which early emotional experiences influence suicidal tendencies remain underexplored. Our project addresses this gap by investigating the relationship between the childhood emotional environment and the emotional components of suicidal episodes.

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What is the context of this research?

Contemporary research attributes suicidal thoughts in adults with healthy childhood environments to various immediate life stressors, such as challenges in regulating the emotional intensity during academic pressure, relationship challenges, personal setbacks or triggering single events. They may be accompanied by feelings of hopelessness, worthlessness, and despair.

However, the emotional responses may trace their origins to early developmental contexts. Existing studies often end inquiry upon identifying immediate triggers in adulthood, neglecting to follow through into the childhood emotional environments. As such, there remains a need to understand the previous affective experiences of individuals who develop suicidal thoughts in response to challenging situations later in life.

What is the significance of this project?

This study addresses a critical gap in suicide research. While much is known about the impact of childhood abuse on mental health in later life, there is little understanding of the reason for suicidal thoughts in young adults that come from seemingly healthy childhood environments. This project examines if and how the emotional parameters of childhood environments contribute to suicidal thoughts, aiming to uncover specific emotional mechanisms at play, thereby providing insights for more effective mental health interventions.

What are the goals of the project?

Suicidal tendencies are different from suicidal thoughts. This project intends to investigate individuals who do not have a history of childhood abuse, but resort to suicide ideation when faced with challenging events. The purpose is to help us determine if there is a direct causality or progression of emotional perception and coping abilities - from childhood events into adulthood - by answering questions related to the " life trajectory" of feelings of hopelessness and despair. Through the emotional integration sessions, we investigate the root cause for the heightened affective intensity. This will allow us to gain additional insight into the mechanisms of human affective processes.