«Suicidology» №1 – 2025
Lyubov E.B., Zotov P.B. Suicidological terminology in scientific research and clinical practice. What does the name mean. Part II. Suicide attempt. Suicidology. 2025; 16 (1): 3-16. (In Russ / Engl) doi.org/10.32878/suiciderus.25-16-01(58)-3-16
The lack of agreed terminology has hampered daily practice and clinical-epidemiological research in suicidology for decades. The development of classifications is preceded by agreement on definitions and terms of suicidal behavior. The second part of the review of the subject field (scoping review) points out the imprecision and ambiguity of the working criteria for a suicide attempt within the framework of intentional self-harming behavior. Reaching agreement is complicated by differences in suicidal intent, heterogeneity of motives and outcomes of attempts.
Keywords: intentional self-harm, suicide attempt, terminology
Filonenko A.V., Golenkov A.V., Kozlov V.A., Sergueeva A.I. "Dark tetrad" of personality traits as an external factor of suicidal behavior. Suicidology. 2025; 16 (1): 17-40. (In Russ / Engl) doi.org/10.32878/suiciderus.25-16-01(58)-17-40
Biological, psychological, clinical, social and environmental factors contribute to suicidal behavior. Repeated exposure to psychosocial stressors plays a significant role. Concern about mental health and suicide risk is caused by a high level of sadism. Sadism includes elements of receiving pleasure from the suffering of others, causing pain and humiliation, and is a significant predictor of aggression. It negatively correlates with compliance, fairness, humility, conscientiousness, emotionality and openness. Sadistic personalities lack honesty, tenderness, discipline, kindness and social activity. All the features of the previously formulated concept of the "Dark Triad" are associated with increased dispositional sadism. Consideration of issues requiring the development of perspectives and methods of treatment taking into account the sadistic focus in solving the problem of suicide is very relevant and comes as a result of the lack of research analyzing the relationship between the darkest personality traits and the suffering of individuals who have been bullied. The aim of the review is to summarize the currently established facts of the relationship between the presence of Dark Tetrad traits in a sadist personality and the outcomes of this form of behavior for the sadist and his victim, as well as to provide information on ways to prevent bullying. Material and methods. A review of domestic and foreign literature describing the risk factors of sadism was conducted. Results. One of the factors in the development of violence is psychological trauma caused by abuse in childhood, unpleasant previous social contacts, leading to paranoid processes of thinking and cognition, paranoid arousal, fear, anxiety and a sense of possible danger, bad mood and discomfort. Aggressive personalities often enter into interpersonal conflicts in social situations. Characteristics of antagonistic personalities include manipulativeness, callousness, unwillingness to be friendly and deceitfulness. Sadism predicts violence among young people and is associated with antisocial traits and behavior in older age. Suffering from bullying negatively impacts the physical, mental, and socio-emotional health and well-being of those who are bullied. Consequences range from symptoms of depression and anxiety to behavioral disorders, substance abuse, and suicidal behavior. Prevention is key to reducing the number of deaths from suicide due to sadism. It includes universal, selective, and indicative interventions, and is often implemented in combination. Interventions in combination with cognitive behavioral therapy, caring contacts, safety planning, and pharmacological treatments, as well as coordinated social and health initiatives, improve the treatment of individuals at risk for suicide. Innovative prevention methods include parental involvement in the prevention of sadism, the use of the Bullying Intervention Program, and metaphorical suggestion of sadism in patients with the Dark Tetrad. Conclusion. Signs of sadistic and suicidal behavior are present in individuals with the Dark Tetrad and remain an issue of great social significance. Further research is needed into predictors and treatments. Identifying sadism that influences the opponent's suicidality is important for developing effective suicide prevention plans. Victims of bullying need strong and supportive leadership to protect them from bullies with exploitative and manipulative personality profiles.
Keywords: sadism, dark tetrad, bullying, suicidal behavior, suicide risk
Perezhogina G.V., Sidorova N.V., Tolstoluzhinskaya E.M., Khabarova E.A. Forms of criminal involvement in suicide: a comparative approach. Suicidology. 2025; 16 (1): 41-55. (In Russ / Engl) doi.org/10.32878/suiciderus.25-16-01(58)-41-55
The study is devoted to a comparative legal analysis of the norms of criminal legislation of Russia and foreign countries on liability for forms of criminal involvement in suicide on a number of key points: on the specifics of legislative regulation of liability for criminal involvement in suicide; on the allocation of independent elements of a crime for different forms of criminal involvement in suicide (incitement, inducement, assistance, counseling aimed at inciting to commit suicide), characteristics of methods of criminal involvement in suicide. The aim of the study is to identify positive experiences in constructing criminal-legal prohibitions on various methods of incitement to suicide, inducement and assistance to it in the legislation of the Russian Federation and foreign countries. The materials for the study were codified regulatory legal acts of the Russian Federation and foreign countries of different continents (Asia, Africa, Europe, South America), containing criminal law norms on criminal liability for various forms of criminal involvement in suicide; texts of court decisions in foreign countries; positions of legal scholars devoted to criminal involvement in suicide. General scientific (dialectical, analysis, synthesis) and specific scientific (comparative legal, legal-dogmatic and systemic-structural) methods were used as research methods , which made it possible to obtain substantiated results. Results. Criminal involvement in suicide is a general concept consisting of three main forms: incitement to suicide, incitement to suicide, assistance to suicide. An analysis of the national legal systems of 34 countries (with a sample across all continents) showed that 39.4% of the national legal systems we studied do not provide for criminal liability for incitement to suicide, but do provide for punishment for other forms of involvement in suicide. Criminal liability for incitement to suicide is provided for, but is combined into one norm with other forms of criminal involvement in suicide – in 24.3% of cases. In 15.1% of states, criminal legislation provides for criminal liability only for incitement to suicide. All forms of criminal involvement in suicide as independent elements of crime are established in 12.1% of the studied states. In 9.1% there is no indication of criminal liability for criminal involvement in suicide.
Keywords: forms of criminal involvement in suicide, criminal suicide, crime, incitement to suicide, incitement to suicide, assistance to suicide
Rameez Ali Mahesar, Ghazala Shoukat, Arifa Saeed, Muhammad Aftab Madni, Erum Hafeez, Sujita Kumar Kar. A 77-year-long suicide research in Pakistan: A bibliometric analysis. Suicidology. 2025; 16 (1): 56-68. (In Russ / Engl) doi.org/10.32878/suiciderus.25-16-01(58)-56-68
Aims: This bibliometric analysis study evaluates suicide-related studies published in Pakistan since it has become independent (August 1947 to August 2024). Method: We searched the Scopus database to identify suicide-related studies to understand the trends of suicide research in Pakistan by using Scopus and word-cloud analyzers. Results: Out of 211 suicide-related studies, the topic was most often analyzed by Murad Moosa Khan, an author of many outstanding articles. The highest number of suicide documents have been published by the Journal of the Pakistan Medical Association and the highest number of publications have been made by Agha Khan University. The most articles dedicated to suicide and related topics were published in 2021. Suicide research was highly contributed by medical institutions. The countries that collaborated the most with Pakistan in suicide research were the US, UK, and India. The National Institute of Health and UK Research and Innovation agencies funded the maximum number of suicide-related research. Conclusion: A significant progress in suicide-related research occurred in Pakistan over the past two decades. Still, there is a significant lack of funded and international collaborative research in the country.
Keywords: suicide, suicidal behavior, suicide research, bibliometric analysis, Pakistan
Orlov FV, Golenkov AV, Kozlov VA. Clinical and biological predictors of efficacy of electroconvulsive therapy in suicidal behavior in patients with mental disorders. Suicidology. 2025; 16 (1): 69-96. (In Russ / Engl) doi.org/10.32878/suiciderus.25-16-01(58)-69-96
The review article discusses the use of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) for mentally ill patients with suicidal behavior. It describes the main electrophysiological mechanisms and therapeutic effects (antidepressant, antimanic, antipsychotic, etc.) of ECT, its safety and efficacy, clinical predictors in various mental disorders (affective/depressive disorders, substance abuse disorders, schizophrenia, post-traumatic stress disorder, eating disorders, etc.). The rapid, but often relatively short-term effect of ECT on suicidal behavior is confirmed. Therefore, supporting ECT that is usually carried out in semi-inpatient (outpatient) conditions can help many patients with conditions resistant to psychopharmacotherapy and persistent suicidal behavior. ECT is still a rarely used method of treating and preventing suicidal behavior, especially in Russia. Integration of clinical and biological markers. The integration of the efficacy of ECT in suicidal behavior into a specific treatment algorithm may facilitate the development of a personalized therapeutic approach to the use of ECT. This will allow the identification of subgroups of individuals who are likely to respond to ECT. And the use of maintenance ECT, taking into account predictors of efficacy in treatment-resistant patients with high-risk mental disorders, opens up new prospects for the prevention of suicidal behavior.
Keywords: suicidal behavior, mental disorders, ECT, safety, efficacy, clinical predictors, biological determinants
Rozanov V.A., Shaboltas A.V. University suicide prevention programs and initiatives – which way to choose? Suicidology. 2025; 16 (1): 97-121. (In Russ / Engl) doi.org/10.32878/suiciderus.25-16-01(58)-97-121
Suicides among university students are quite common and typical for many countries of the world, including Russia. According to many sources, undergraduate and post-graduate students are characterized by a high risk of suicidal behavior, which is associated with a high stress load and difficulties in adapting to a new stage of life, new challenges, higher level of responsibility. In this respect, students may be seen as a specific group, although sometimes there are analogies with suicides in the school environment, especially in the first years of higher education. At the same time, prevention programs and strategies implemented in higher education institutions are not so detailed and are less represented in the scientific literature. Methodology. Scientific publications for this narrative review were searched using various Russian-language and international resources (Cyberleninka, eLibrary, PubMed). Results. While foreign sources discuss mainly the effectiveness of evidence-based programs and strategies (awareness raising, trainings for gatekeepers and decision-makers, psychotherapeutic techniques), while domestic literature mostly presents various internal university initiatives that can be considered as examples of a “good practice”. Foreign meta-analyses note that standardized programs demonstrate effectiveness regarding intermediate results (knowledge enhancement, awareness of suicide and mental health issues) as well in reducing depressive symptoms, anxiety, deviant behaviours and other psychological risk factors, but there is no convincing evidence that this leads to a decrease in the prevalence of suicides or suicide attempts among students. Existing programs and initiatives in the Russian universities reflect a general understanding of the different levels of prevention (primary, secondary, tertiary), but often with inconsistent “author’s interpretation” how to fill these prevention levels with specific actions. Russian universities also use practical technologies and programs that have been tested abroad, as well as independently developed organizational measures aimed at students themselves, psychological support services and university administration. Conclusions. Student suicides are much more numerous than adolescent suicides, but receive disproportionately little attention from researchers, practitioners and educational institutions administration. The implementation of various initiatives and practices within universities should take into account a need of balance between educational programs and information campaigns providing knowledge about the problem of suicide, and recommendations of positive actions aimed at improving the overall psychological well-being and adaptability of students. In our opinion, a comprehensive study of protective factors and antisuicidal barriers inherent to modern students is a promising area of research augmenting risk assessment, and potentially can lead to the development of more valid and comprehensive recommendations for university psychological services, as well as for university administrations.
Keywords: suicide, university students, preventive measures, programs and initiatives, international and local experience
Lyubov E.B. Female suicidology in fiction samples. Part IV: the suicidal process. Suicidology. 2025; 16 (1): 122-145. (In Russ / Engl) doi.org/10.32878/suiciderus.25-16-01(58)-122-145
Based on works of art (mostly prose of the 19th-20th centuries), typical stages of the suicidal process are identified as a dynamic balance of suicidogenic and protective factors in the coordinates of "life – death", cultural-historical and philosophical contexts with clarification of the aesthetic relations of art and reality. Social analysis of suicide is based on examples of "physiology", an internal picture and characteristics that predict death and recovery (resurrection).
Keywords: story, women, suicidal behavior
Simutkin G.G., Vasileva S.N., Smirnova N.S., Surovtseva A.K., Bokhan N.A. Suicidal risk in bipolar affective disorder taking into account its comorbidity with alcohol addiction. Suicidology. 2025; 16 (1): 146-156. (In Russ / Engl) doi.org/10.32878/suiciderus.25-16-01(58)-146-156
High risk of suicide in people with bipolar affective disorder and alcohol addiction has been demonstrated in numerous studies. Comorbid course of these disorders further increases the vulnerability of patients to suicidal thoughts and suicide attempts. Aim: to study the effect of comorbid alcohol addiction on the risk of suicidal behavior in patients with bipolar affective disorder. Material and methods. Two groups of patients were examined in a psychiatric hospital with subsequent comparison. The group of patients with bipolar affective disorder and comorbid alcohol addiction – 43 people aged 35 [24.0; 45.0] and the group of patients with bipolar affective disorder without comorbid alcohol addiction – 60 people aged 38 [24.0; 51.0]. The groups were comparable in age and gender (p> 0.05). Research methods: clinical-psychopathological, clinical-follow-up, psychometric, statistical. Various aspects of suicidal behavior in patients of the examined groups were assessed using the SBQ-R suicidal behavior questionnaire. The level of social functioning and quality of life of patients was determined using the SASS questionnaire. Results. In patients with comorbid bipolar affective disorder and alcohol dependence, compared with "isolated" bipolar affective disorder, a more frequent occurrence of suicide attempts in the anamnesis (44.2% versus 25.0%) and higher scores of the SBQ-R scale (13 [10; 14] and 7 [4; 9], respectively) (p<0.05) were revealed. Correlation analysis of the relationship SBQ-R scores with clinical and dynamic indicators of bipolar affective disorder and demographic characteristics showed: in both groups, the risk of suicidal behavior decreases with increasing age of patients (p<0.05), with "isolated" bipolar affective disorder, more unfavorable SBQ-R scores are associated with male gender, shorter duration of affective disorder and younger age at onset of bipolar affective disorder (p<0.05). Similar correlations were not revealed in the group of bipolar affective disorder with comorbid alcohol addiction. Evaluation of the relationships between the SASS and SBQ-R scales showed that in both study groups, the severity of suicidal behavior scores correlates with difficulties arising in relationships with other people. Conclusions. Patients with comorbid bipolar affective disorder and alcohol addiction show more severe rates of suicidal behavior compared to patients with "isolated" bipolar affective disorder.
Keywords: suicidal behavior, bipolar affective disorder, comorbidity, alcohol addiction, clinical and dynamic characteristics, social adaptation
Klepikova N.M., Gurina E.S. Trends of the socio-cultural environment as a factor of vitality disorder and the risk of formation of suicidal behavior in modern children and adolescents. Suicidology. 2025; 16 (1): 157-176. (In Russ / Engl) doi.org/10.32878/suiciderus. 25-16-01(58)-157-176
Currently, the problem of suicide among children and adolescents remains relevant, which requires from specialists and parents competence in both identifying and reducing suicide risk factors and in building up such a personal resource as resilience. Resilience is considered as an anti-suicide factor, but is often confused with such terms as stress resistance and frustration tolerance. The aim of the article is to study resilience and analyze modern socio-cultural trends that mediate its formation. Material and methods: to clarify the very concept of "resilient" and identify current trends that negatively affect the formation of resilience, the authors of the article use the method of a systematic review, the search for material for which was carried out by keywords in domestic and foreign databases elibrary.ru, WoS, Scopus. Results: By introducing differential criteria that distinguish resilience from other similar concepts, the authors propose to understand resilience as an existentially conditioned attitude of the subject to life, consisting of involvement, the ability to make decisions and readiness for risk. The work emphasizes that one of the conditions for the formation of resilience in children and adolescents in modern socio-cultural conditions is parental competence. In the article, such trends of the socio-cultural environment as digitalization of space, instability and uncertainty, existential vacuum, emphasis on child-centeredness, loss of initiations are considered as factors of resilience violation and the risk of suicidal behavior in children and adolescents. The identified trends represent conditions under which the level of depressive and anxiety states increases, communication and adaptation skills suffer, life-meaning reflection is lost, infantilization increases, and other factors of suicide risk increase. In conclusion, the authors note the importance of creating conditions in the children's microenvironment that would contribute to increasing their resilience. According to the authors, the necessary vectors are: preserving the experience of "live" (not virtual) relationships; maintaining a sense of stability and certainty in micro-groups as opposed to the general unpredictability of the world; creating spiritual, semantic and value coordinates; organizing an environment that stimulates children's social activity and independence; organizing various variations of initiating practices that contribute to the interiorization of new social statuses and roles.
Keywords: suicidal behavior, suicide risk factors, resilience, stress resistance, frustration tolerance, adolescents, parental competence, responsible parenting
Merinov A.V., Stenina E.A., Rogacheva A.S. Clinical and suicidological characteristics of individuals hospitalized as a result of suicide attempts or suicidal intentions. Suicidology. 2025; 16 (1): 177-192. (In Russ / Engl) doi.org/10.32878/suiciderus.25-16-01(58)-177-192
The problem of suicide is the most serious challenge to modern humanity. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), more than 720,000 people commit suicide every year. Many people who have attempted suicide suffer from various forms of mental disorders. The aim of the study: to analyze the prevalence of suicide attempts and suicidal intentions (suicidal thoughts with consideration of the method of committing suicide) as the main reason for hospitalization in the acute male and female departments of a regional psychiatric hospital, to determine significant differences in the clinical and suicidological characteristics of males and females. Materials and methods: To solve the objectives of the study, 1016 medical records of patients admitted to the male (640 people) and female (376 people) clinical departments were analyzed. According to the developed selection criteria, 33 people were included in the study (admitted in 2023-24): 12 were hospitalized due to the presence of suicidal intentions (4 men and 8 women); 21 – after a suicide attempt (7 men and 14 women). The patients age ranged from 15 to 63. Statistical analysis of the results and data processing were carried out using the nonparametric method of mathematical statistics using c2 Pearson based on the SPSS program. Results: it was revealed that women are almost three times more likely to be hospitalized in a psychiatric hospital due to the presence of indicated suicidal intentions. Over the entire period (two full calendar years, of the total number of admissions), 1.09% of men were hospitalized with suicide attempts, 0.63% with suicidal intent; in the female group, the corresponding values were 3.72% and 1.86%. When analyzing age characteristics, the majority of hospitalized patients were 15-23 years old, both in the male and female groups. The leading pathology in women was that of the affective spectrum (primary depressive episodes, recurrent and bipolar affective disorder); in men – F2 "Schizophrenia, schizotypal and delusional disorders" and F6 "mature personality and behavioral disorders in adults". 80% of respondents from the female group had previously consulted psychiatrists, 46% had undergone inpatient treatment, less than 50% of men had such experience, 28% had been treated in hospital before. The method of suicide attempt in women in 50% of cases is poisoning, in men – self-cutting (42.8%). Conclusions: despite the widespread prevalence of suicidal tendencies in literally all diagnostic psychiatric clusters and the significant prevalence of mental illnesses in modern society in general, a minimal number of patients who have attempted suicide or have serious suicidal intentions are hospitalized in psychiatric departments of hospitals. Many hospitalizations are "accidental" – survivors of attempts made using highly fatal methods of injury (falling from a height, self-hanging). Presumably, unfortunately, a significant part of them ends in death. The hospital psychiatry deals with the results of suicide attempts carried out by less lethal means (self-cutting, self-poisoning), carried out mainly at the height of affective experiences or affective-shock reactions, often with the absence of a true desire to achieve a fatal outcome.
Keywords: suicide, psychiatric disorder
Zotov P.B., Markov A.A., Suldin A.M., Umansky M.S., Dolgova I.G., Furin V.A., Sergejchik O.I. Suicidal mortality in the Yamalo-Nenets autonomous district (West Siberia): risk factors and prevention strategies. Suicidology. 2025; 16 (1): 193-219. (In Russ / Engl) doi.org/10.32878/suiciderus.25-16-01(58)-193-219
The suicide rate is an integral indicator that largely reflects the social and economic well-being of the territory. For individual regions, geoclimatic factors can also be of great importance, often determining the formation of special lifestyles, work and rest regimes, requirements for economic forms and many other categories that can often potentiate the development of emotional disorders, alcohol abuse, and the formation of suicidal behavior. The aim of the study was to assess the key socio-economic, medical and other indicators of the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous District (West Siberia) in association with the suicide mortality rate, and to develop suicide prevention strategies. Material and methods. Federal statistics data on individual socio-economic, medical and other indicators of the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous District in 2010 and 2023 were used. Results. In recent years, the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous District has demonstrated positive dynamics in many socio-economic indicators and is among the leading regions in the Russian Federation. However, suicide mortality rates exceed the national average (in 2023, in the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous District – 12.4, in Russia – 7.8 per 100,000 population), with a recorded slowdown in the decline in recent years. Suicide risk factors may include family dysfunction with a higher divorce rate (in 2023, in the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous District – 795, in the Russian Federation – 723 per 1,000 marriages), excess alcohol consumption (in 2023, in the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous District – 9.7, in the Russian Federation – 8.6 liters of ethanol per capita), deficiencies in the organization of leisure time for the population, and housing conditions. These issues require study, analysis and solutions. Research that studies the influence of environmental factors, including those caused by weather, geoclimatic changes, solar activity, daylight hours and others, available for registration in various population groups of a given territory, may be promising. Conclusions. To improve the situation and solve the problem, multilateral coordinated work of the regional health care system, social services, improvement of methods of work in the economic, social sphere and youth policy is required. The region needs to develop a territorial prevention program with the involvement of all interested departments and funds.
Keywords: suicide, suicide mortality, risk factors, suicide prevention, Far North, Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous District, West Siberia, Russia