Author Affiliations: Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston (Liu); Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts (Liu); Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, Massachusetts (Liu); Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Temple University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (Walsh); Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Delaware, Newark (Sheehan); Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina (Cheek); Department of Psychology, University at Albany, State University of New York, Albany (Sanzari).
Corresponding Author: Richard T. Liu, PhD, Massachusetts General Hospital, Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, 55 Fruit St, Boston, MA 02114 (rtliupsych@gmail. com).
(Reprinted) E1
IMPORTANCE Considerably less is known about self-injurious thoughts and behaviors (SITBs) in preadolescence than older age groups, owing partly to the common view that young children are incapable of suicidal thoughts. Yet, preadolescent suicide has increased in recent years and is now the fifth leading cause of death in this age group, leading the National Institute of Mental Health to identify it as a priority for research and intervention.
OBJECTIVE To assess prevalence estimates of preadolescent SITBs, identify correlates of these outcomes, and conduct head-to-head comparisons of preadolescent and adolescent SITBs in terms of associated characteristics.