Hopelessness as mediator of the link between reports of a history of child maltreatment and suicidality in African American women

Findings from a study comparing reports of a history of child maltreatment and hopelessness in a sample of economically, socially, and educationally disadvantaged young urban African American women suicide attempters (n = 176) and demographically similar nonattempters (n = 185) revealed higher rates of child maltreatment and hopelessness among attempters than those among their nonsuicidal counterparts. Using a mediational model involving both linear and logistic regressions, results indicated that hopelessness partially mediated the link between reports of certain forms of child maltreatment (i.e., physical/emotional abuse and emotional neglect) and suicide attempts, and hopelessness fully mediated the link between child sexual abuse and suicide attempts. Of equal importance, reports of a history of childhood maltreatment significantly predicted the presence of hopelessness in those women who later attempted suicide. These results emphasize the clinical importance of screening for hopelessness in women who report a history of childhood maltreatment and/or current or previous suicidal behavior, as well as the need to target negative views of the future in clinical interventions with African American women abused as children.