Natuhamya Charles, Nabukalu Enid, Lyons Matthew, Gittner Kevin B, Palmier Jane, Culbreth Rachel, Swahn Monica H
Uganda Youth Development Link, Kampala, Uganda.
Health Promotion and Physical Education, Wellstar College of Health and Human Services, Kennesaw State University, Kennesaw, USA.
BMC Psychiatry. 2025 Jun 2;25(1):568. doi: 10.1186/s12888-025-06930-0.
Multivariate analysis in suicidality research is of interest not only to identify the pathology of suicidality but also to understand the mechanisms of its treatment and to ascertain more efficient intervention strategies. The current study aimed to assess the roles of neighborhood factors, coping, and resilience in the association between depression and suicidal ideation in the understudied population of young women in the Kampala slum areas of Uganda.
Data from the baseline assessment of "The Onward Project On Wellbeing and Adversity" (TOPOWA) research study were utilized during analysis. TOPOWA is a multi-component, prospective cohort study examining the mechanistic pathways of mental illness in the context of social determinants of mental health and lived experience among young women aged 18 to 24 years living in the urban slums of Kampala. The cohort comprises 300 women recruited in 2023 from 3 study sites (i.e., Banda, Bwaise, and Makindye). A path analysis hypothesizing the roles of neighborhood characteristics, coping, and resilience in the association between depression and suicidal ideation was modeled. Neighborhood characteristics in this study were typically neighborhood cohesion and neighborhood satisfaction.
The study findings demonstrated a significant role of resilience in the relationship between the neighborhood characteristics, depression, and suicidal ideation in a population where the prevalence of suicidal ideation (46.0%) and depression (57.8%) is substantial. Resilience was linked to reduced suicidal ideation (β = -0.02, p < 0.05) and depression (β = -0.14, p < 0.001).
Intervention programs geared towards building resilience among young women in Uganda may reduce suicidal ideation directly or indirectly by decreasing depression, especially in urban slum settings.
自杀行为研究中的多变量分析不仅有助于识别自杀行为的病理机制，还能帮助理解其治疗机制，并确定更有效的干预策略。本研究旨在评估邻里因素、应对方式和心理韧性在乌干达坎帕拉贫民窟地区未被充分研究的年轻女性群体中，抑郁症与自杀意念之间关联中的作用。
分析过程中使用了“幸福与逆境前进项目”（TOPOWA）研究的基线评估数据。TOPOWA是一项多部分的前瞻性队列研究，旨在探讨心理健康的社会决定因素以及生活经历背景下，18至24岁居住在坎帕拉城市贫民窟的年轻女性心理疾病的机制途径。该队列由2023年从3个研究地点（即班达、布韦塞和马金德耶）招募的300名女性组成。构建了一个路径分析模型，假设邻里特征、应对方式和心理韧性在抑郁症与自杀意念之间的关联中所起的作用。本研究中的邻里特征通常是邻里凝聚力和邻里满意度。
研究结果表明，在自杀意念（46.0%）和抑郁症（57.8%）患病率较高的人群中，心理韧性在邻里特征、抑郁症和自杀意念之间的关系中发挥了重要作用。心理韧性与自杀意念减少（β = -0.02，p < 0.05）和抑郁症减少（β = -0.14，p < 0.001）相关。
针对增强乌干达年轻女性心理韧性的干预项目，可能通过减轻抑郁症，直接或间接地减少自杀意念，尤其是在城市贫民窟环境中。
