(Abstract)
The main purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of stressors(abuse experience, friendship-related stress, and academic stress) on depression and suicidal ideation among adolescents. The study model was derived from the stress process model proposed by Pearlin et al(1981) and self-esteem and social support were utilized as mediating variables.
In order to accomplish the study purpose, a meta-analysis technique was adopted to combine 433 existing studies that investigated suicidal ideation-related topics. For data analysis, journals, theses, and dissertations published between January, 1990 and July, 2012 were reviewed systematically. Correlations of these variables were calculated from the data and then the obtained correlation matrices were analyzed using structural path analysis to test the appropriateness of the hypothesized model. The data were analysed using Meta-Analysis software 2.0 and AMOS 18.0.
This study results were as following.
First, the results indicated that a large effect size was obtained between suicidal ideation and depression(r= .585). Suicidal ideation also showed a medium effect size with self-esteem(r= -.355), abuse experience(r= .347), social support(r= -.300), friendship-related stress(r= .274), and academic stress(r= .262).
Second, the results showed that the hypothesized model derived from the pearlin et al(1981) could be reasonably and appropriately applied to adolescents.
Third, abuse experience which was found to have a substantial importance, friendship-related stress, social support and self-esteem had a direct effect on depression. Abuse experience, social support and depression had direct effect on suicidal ideation. It was also found that friendship-related stress showed an indirect influence on suicidal ideation through social support and depression whereas academic stress showed an indirect influence on suicidal ideation through self-esteem and depression.
Finally, in terms of the mediating role of psychosocial resources, social support and self-esteem mediated the associations between the stressors and the outcomes. More specifically, social support mediated the associations between abuse experience and suicidal ideation, abuse experience and depression, friendship-related stress and depression. In the meantime, self-esteem mediated the associations between stressors(abuse experience, friendship-related stress, academic stress) and depression.
In conclusion, this study provided several significances in the adolescence literature. First, this study confirmed that stressors(abuse experience, friendship-related stress, academic stress) had both direct and indirect effects on suicidal ideation. Considering the fact that this study utilized meta-analytic approach, this study provided more integrated results of the previous studies. Second, this study also verified that stress process model could be applied to explain suicidal ideation among adolescents. Third, the results of this study are very meaningful in that they provided specific alternatives to prevent adolescents’ suicidal ideation and to provide integrated strategies to decrease stress, and depression and to improve psychosocial resources.