Powell Terrinieka W, Smith Bianca D, Spencer Bailey Holmes, Adane Nancy, Stovall Aris
Department of Population, Family and Reproductive Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, United States of America.
Department of Mental Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, United States of America.
J Child Adolesc Trauma. 2025 Aug 13. doi: 10.1007/s40653-025-00745-7.
Rates of suicidality are increasing among Black youth, who have higher instances of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) exposure compared to their White counterparts, despite reporting overall better mental health. This manuscript describes the suicidality trends among Black youth exposed to ACEs.
One hundred fifteen Black adolescents aged 11-16 participated in one of two interventions from 2022 to 2024 focused on substance use prevention and sexual health promotion. Both interventions consisted of eight sessions offered twice weekly over four weeks. To be eligible, youth were required to report exposure to at least one household challenge (i.e., a caregiver with a history of substance use, incarceration, or mental illness). Baseline and posttest assessments asked about exposure to nine adversities as well as about suicidal thoughts, plans, and attempts. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize the sample's suicidality and adversity.
The cohort reported being exposed to an average of three ACEs. Experiencing peer victimization (77.7%), discrimination (61.3%), and having an incarcerated family member (52.3%) were the most common types of adversity within the sample. From baseline to posttest, the frequency of suicidal thoughts increased nearly 4% among younger adolescents (ages 11-13) but decreased 5% among older adolescents (ages 14-16). A similar trend was observed for suicidal attempts but not plans.
Understanding the persistence and timing of ACEs exposures may be a critical factor in understanding suicidality among Black youth. Efforts to reduce suicidality among this group should focus on age-appropriate strategies to reduce ACEs exposures.
黑人青少年的自杀率正在上升，尽管他们总体心理健康状况较好，但与白人青少年相比，他们遭受童年不良经历（ACEs）的情况更为普遍。本手稿描述了遭受ACEs的黑人青少年的自杀趋势。
115名年龄在11至16岁之间的黑人青少年在2022年至2024年期间参与了两项干预措施中的一项，这些措施侧重于预防药物使用和促进性健康。两项干预措施均包括在四周内每周两次的八节课程。要符合条件，青少年必须报告至少经历过一次家庭挑战（即有药物使用、监禁或精神疾病史的照顾者）。基线和测试后评估询问了九种逆境的经历以及自杀想法、计划和企图。描述性统计用于总结样本的自杀倾向和逆境情况。
该队列报告平均经历了三种ACEs。在样本中，遭受同伴欺凌（77.7%）、歧视（61.3%）和有家庭成员被监禁（52.3%）是最常见的逆境类型。从基线到测试后，较年轻青少年（11至13岁）的自杀想法频率增加了近4%，而较年长青少年（14至16岁）则下降了5%。自杀企图也观察到了类似趋势，但自杀计划没有。
了解ACEs暴露的持续性和时间可能是理解黑人青少年自杀倾向的关键因素。减少该群体自杀率的努力应侧重于采用适合年龄的策略来减少ACEs暴露。
