AUTHOR=Peng Biao , Hu Ningning , Guan Li , Chen Chao , Chen Zhu , Yu Huiying 

TITLE=Family functioning and suicidal ideation in college students: a moderated mediation model of depression and acceptance

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Public Health

VOLUME=Volume 11 - 2023

YEAR=2023

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/public-health/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2023.1137921

DOI=10.3389/fpubh.2023.1137921

ISSN=2296-2565

ABSTRACT=Objective: To explore the mediating role of depression in the relationship between family functioning and suicidal ideation in college students, and to explore whether acceptance plays a moderating role in this mediating model.
Methods: In a cross-sectional study, questionnaires were distributed to college students during November and December 2022. The sample of Chinese college students (n = 592, 43.07% male, 56.93% female, mean age 19.40 years, SD = 1.24 years) completed the Family Adaptability and Cohesion Evaluation Scale (FACES Ⅲ), the Center for Epidemiological Depression Scale (CES-D), the Positive and Negative Suicide Ideation Inventory (PANSI), and the Acceptance and Action Questionnaire-Second Edition (AAQ II). SPSS 25.0 for Windows and PROCESS 2.15 macros were used for data analysis.
Results: There was a significant negative correlation between family functioning and suicidal ideation, and depression played a mediating role in this relationship. Acceptance moderated the indirect effects of depression and suicidal ideation in college students. In college students with a lower acceptance level (i.e., higher experiential avoidance level), depression had more influence on suicidal ideation, while the influence of depression on suicidal ideation was less in college students with a higher acceptance level (i.e., lower experiential avoidance level). Family functioning indirectly influenced suicidal ideation through the moderation of acceptance.
Conclusion: Mental health educators in colleges and universities should pay more attention to identifying and relieving depression in college students, thereby dealing with suicide risk more effectively. At the same time, college students should be discouraged from excessive use of experiential avoidance strategies, and instead taught to master effective emotional regulation strategies such as mindfulness, distress tolerance, and radical acceptance skills to improve their acceptance level and alleviate the influence of depression on suicidal ideation.