Parental bonding and vulnerability to adolescent suicide

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Abstract
Part of a series of studies into early detection in adolescent suicide, this study investigated relationships between parenting style and suicidal thoughts, acts and depression. Students (mean age 15 years) from 4 randomly chosen high schools completed self‐report questionnaires containing the Parental Bonding Instrument (PBI) and the Youth Self Report, which provided information about suicide ideation, deliberate self‐harm and depression. Significant differences for mean scores on the PBI subscales were noted between cases and noncases of depression, suicidal thoughts and deliberate self‐harm. Assignment by adolescents of their parents to the “affectionless control” quadrant of the PBI doubles the relative risk for suicidal thoughts, increases the relative risk for deliberate self‐harm 3‐fold and increases the relative risk for depression 5‐fold. It seems that the PBI may play a role in identification of vulnerable adolescents; further, it both elucidates aspects of adolescent‐parent interaction and points toward areas for intervention with at‐risk adolescents. We recommend the use of the PBI in early detection studies of adolescent suicide.

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