Real-time assessment of suicidal thoughts and behaviors
Abstract
One of the greatest challenges to understanding, predicting, and preventing suicide is that we have never had the ability to observe and intervene upon them as they unfold in real-time. Recently developed real-time monitoring methods are creating new opportunities for scientific and clinical advances. For instance, recent real-time monitoring studies of suicidal thoughts show that they typically are episodic, with quick onset and short duration. Many known risk factors that predict changes in suicidal thoughts over months/years (e.g. hopelessness) do not predict changes over hours/days-highlighting the gap in our abilities for short-term prediction. Current and future studies using newer streams of data from smartphone sensors (e.g. GPS) and wearables (e.g. heart rate) are further expanding knowledge and clinical possibilities.
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Studies showing considerable fluctuations in suicidal thoughts throughout the day suggest that the relative importance of reasons to die and reasons to live might also be subject to rapid changes.
“Furthermore, studies showing considerable fluctuations in suicidal thoughts throughout the day (2, 40–42) suggest that the relative importance of reasons to die and reasons to live might also be subject to rapid changes.”
From Ambivalence model of suicidality [ABS-model]: an orientation model for the treatment of suicidal individuals (2024) · cites this paper as [41]
When active suicidal ideation is measured 10 times a day across seven days, 36% of the variance is accounted for by within-person variability.
“Hallensleben and colleagues (2) could demonstrate that if measured 10 times a day across seven days, 36% of the variance in active suicidal ideation is accounted for by within-person-variability (see also e.g., 41, 42).”
From Ambivalence model of suicidality [ABS-model]: an orientation model for the treatment of suicidal individuals (2024) · cites this paper as [41]
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- Authors
- Kleiman, E. M., & Nock, M. K.
- Affiliations
- Harvard University (US)
- Corresponding author
- Kleiman, Evan M
- Venue
- Current Opinion in Psychology
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2018-08
- Volume
- 22
- Pages
- 33-37
- ISSN
- 2352-250X (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2737155082
- Cited by
- 239
- References
- 31
- Citations by year
- 2026: 30 · 2025: 25 · 2024: 26 · 2023: 30 · 2022: 32 · 2021: 37 · 2020: 30 · 2019: 19 · 2018: 9 · 2012: 1
- FWCI
- 2.42
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Current Opinion in Psychology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Digital Access to Scholarship at Harvard (DASH) (Harvard University) (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Suicide and Self-Harm Studies
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Mental Health Research Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Mental Health via Writing
- Keywords
- suicidal ideation, suicidal behavior, real-time monitoring, suicide prevention, short-term forecasting, hopelessness, smartphone sensors, GPS, wearable devices, heart rate
- MeSH terms
- Smartphone, Wearable Electronic Devices, Humans, Time Factors, Suicidal Ideation
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