Protective factors of suicidal behaviors in children and adolescents/young adults: A literature review

Abstract

BackgroundSuicidal behaviors present a public health challenge in children and adolescents. Although the risk factors have long been well documented, protective factors have only been documented for a few years, and there has not been a literature review concerning the suicidal behaviors of children and adolescents since 2006. MethodsRelevant articles were collected using the Medline/PubMed, Web of Science, and ScienceDirect databases. Studies meeting the following inclusion criteria were included: age of participants from 6 to 19 years, qualitative and quantitative cohort or case–control studies, multivariate analysis studies, and studies with significant results for at least one protective factor. The methodology used in this review is based on the PRISMA criteria. ResultsA total of 26 studies were included in this review, which highlights various individual and environmental protective factors. The results were too heterogeneous to perform a meta-analysis, and therefore the discussion is in the form of a narrative summary. High-quality relationships with family and in the school environment were the most frequently found protective factors. The presence of positive links with peers, with other adults, and with the culture of origin was also noted. On an individual level, self-esteem, emotional intelligence, and particular coping abilities were found to be the most important protective factors. ConclusionThere are numerous important protective factors for suicidal behaviors in children and adolescents and also for adapting care to their needs. A future challenge will be to determine the best protective factors to be consolidated or strengthened using self-assessment tools that are already in use or being developed.