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Suicide as escape from self.
Abstract
Suicide is analyzed in terms of motivations to escape from aversive self-awareness. The causal chain begins with events that fall severely short of standards and expectations. These failures are attributed internally, which makes self-awareness painful. Awareness of the self's inadequacies generates negative affect, and the individual therefore desires to escape from self-awareness and the associated affect. The person tries to achieve a state of cognitive deconstruction (constricted temporal focus, concrete thinking, immediate or proximal goals, cognitive rigidity, and rejection of meaning), which helps prevent meaningful self-awareness and emotion. The deconstructed state brings irrationality and disinhibition, making drastic measures seem acceptable. Suicide can be seen as an ultimate step in the effort to escape from self and world.
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“Some of the behavioral manifestations found in previous research are avoidance (Moskalenko and Heine 2003), self-harm (Baumeister 1990; Morin and Craig 2000), increased emotional intensity (Silvia 2002), and -particularly pertinent to our research -self-regulation (Bandura 1978; Carver and Scheier 2004; Kanfer 1977).”
From Paradoxical effects of self-awareness of being observed: testing the effect of police body-worn cameras on assaults and aggression against officers (2018) · cites this paper as Baumeister 1990
In the citing paper
“Some of the predominant psychological frameworks that attempt to explain suicide, particularly the entrapment/cry of pain model, include escape from pain as a key factor [17-19].”
From Efficacy of acceptance and commitment therapy in reducing suicidal ideation and deliberate self-harm: Systematic review (2018) · cites this paper as [17]
In the citing paper
“Accepting reality and reducing avoidance are fundamental aims of ACT, and this therapeutic work is aligned with the theories of suicide that focus on an individual’s sense of entrapment and/or desire to escape their current reality [17-19].”
From Efficacy of acceptance and commitment therapy in reducing suicidal ideation and deliberate self-harm: Systematic review (2018) · cites this paper as [17]
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MethodModus Operandi and Personality Disorder in Incarcerated Spousal Killers
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“Many theorists have sought to explain suicide (e.g., Baumeister, 1990; Shneidman, 1985; Williams, 2001; Williams et al., 2008), and although these theories have been useful in guiding research and prevention efforts, there is no evidence of sustained reductions in suicide rates (WHO, 2014).”
ResultA psychometric investigation of the suicide status form II with a psychiatric inpatient sample
Conrad, A. K., Jacoby, A. M., Jobes, D. A., Lineberry, T. W., Shea, C. E., Arnold Ewing, T. D., Schmid, P. J., Ellenbecker, S. M., Lee, J. L., Fritsche, K., et al. (2009) · Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior · doi:10.1521/suli.2009.39.3.307 · Cited by 108
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Isaacs, J. Y., Smith, M. M., Sherry, S., Seno, M., Moore, M., & Stewart, S. H. (2022) · Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior · doi:10.1111/sltb.12846 · Cited by 117
Negative Affect and Cognitive Biases in Suicidal and Nonsuicidal Hospitalized Adolescents
Pinto, A., & Whisman, M. A. (1996) · Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry · doi:10.1097/00004583-199602000-00008 · Cited by 107
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Kuper, L. E., Adams, N. S., & Mustanski, B. S. (2018) · LGBT Health · doi:10.1089/lgbt.2017.0259 · Cited by 119
“, distorting gains and losses associated with suicide) to result in suicide ideation and attempt.(40) Of note, debate currently exists within the literature regarding how distinct predictors of suicide attempt are from suicide ideation.”
BackgroundLife events, entrapments and arrested anger in depression
Gilbert, P., Gilbert, J., & Irons, C. (2003) · Journal of Affective Disorders · doi:10.1016/s0165-0327(02)00405-6 · Cited by 110
“However there is good evidence that this form of ‘internal’ entrapment is highly associated with depression (Gilbert and Allan, 1998; Gilbert and Gilbert, in press), depression in schizophrenia (Rooke and Birchwood, 1998) and a common reason for suicide (Baumeister, 1990).”
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“The SSF also obtains ratings of the patient’s sense of hopelessness, based on the work of Aaron Beck (Beck et al., 1989) and self-hate, derived from Baumeister’s work conceptualizing suicide as an escape from the pain of self-loathing (Baumeister, 1990).”
MethodBolton, C. A., Gooding, P. A., Kapur, N., Barrowclough, C., & Tarrier, N. (2007) · Clinical Psychology Review · doi:10.1016/j.cpr.2006.12.001 · Cited by 113
Gambling and Suicidality in Treatment-Seeking Pathological Gamblers
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“Theory and research have demonstrated that such factors as escape from painful emotions (Baumeister, 1990; Shneidman, 1996), dissociation (Saxe et al.”
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“Baumeister et al. (1998) have referred to these as ego-depleting strategies. Richards and Gross (2000) sum up these effects with the phrase ‘‘There are cognitive costs to keeping one’s cool’’ (p.”
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Luoma, J. B., & Villatte, J. L. (2012) · Cognitive and Behavioral Practice · doi:10.1016/j.cbpra.2010.12.003 · Cited by 105
“…or avoid intolerable psychological experiences, including psychological pain (“psychache”; Shneidman, 1993), awareness of aversive self-evaluations (Baumeister, 1990), and a psychological perspective wherein the current situation appears hopeless and solutions to problems appear to be remote or…”
BackgroundInfluentialOpenness to experience and completed suicide across the second half of life
Duberstein, P. R. (1995) · International Psychogeriatrics · doi:10.1017/s1041610295001967 · Cited by 104
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“For example, Stenseng, Rise and Kraft (2012) define escapism as a mindset resulting from task absorption, temporary disassociation, and a reduction in self-evaluation, whilst Baumeister (1990) defines escapism as an avoidance of critical self-evaluation.”
BackgroundBeyond anger control: Difficulty attending to emotions also predicts aggression in offenders.
Roberton, T., Daffern, M., & Bucks, R. S. (2014) · Psychology of Violence · doi:10.1037/a0037214 · Cited by 104
Walsh, J. J., & Ugumba-Agwunobi, G. (2002) · Personality and Individual Differences · doi:10.1016/s0191-8869(01)00148-9 · Cited by 103
“…has been linked with anorexia nervosa (Cooper, Cooper, and Fairburn, 1985), depression (Blatt, 1995; Hewitt, & Dyck, 1986), suicide ideation (Baumeister, 1990; Hewitt, Newton, Flett & Callander, 1997); alcoholism (Hoge & McCarthy, 1983) and depressive affect (Higgins, Bond, Klein, &…”
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“Several models of suicide behavior (e.g., Baumeister, 1990; Hewitt et al., 2006; Orbach, 1997) incorporate perfectionism, explicitly or implicitly.”
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“…because suicidal behaviour can be viewed as an attempt to escape or avoid unbearable situations or feelings (Williams et al. 2005), including an attempt to escape from the aversive self-awareness, which arises from a perceived failure to live up to internal and external standards (Baumeister 1990).”
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“For example, Baumeister (1990) drew on social, personality, and cognitive psychology to posit that suicide attempts were motivated by a need to escape from an especially painful state of self-awareness.”
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Orbach, I., Stein, D. J., Shani-Sela, M., & Har‐Even, D. (2001) · Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior · doi:10.1521/suli.31.3.237.24250 · Cited by 101
Vuong, Q., Le, T.-T., Jin, R., Khuc, Q. V., Nguyen, H.-S., Vuong, T., & Nguyen, M. (2023) · International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health · doi:10.3390/ijerph20065173 · Cited by 82
“Baumeister [5] considered suicide an escape from an unpleasant mental state, while Abramson et al.”
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A diffusion tensor imaging study of suicide attempters
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“Self-focus has been an integral part of major cognitive theories of depression (Clark and Beck, 1999) and it has been hypothesized that suicidal behavior is an attempt to escape from negative self-awareness resulting from perceived failure (Baumeister, 1990).”
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Differentiating Between Depression, Hopelessness, and Psychache in University Undergraduates
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“More recent cognitive theorists have posited that mental pain is an extreme form of disappointment in oneself that is caused by a discrepancy between one’s actual and ideal views of oneself (Baumeister, 1990).”
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“For example, Baumeister's theory of cognitive deconstruction and his work on self-regulation breakdown (Baumeister, 1990 ; Baumeister, Heatherton, & Tice, 1994 ) has clear implications for explaining how negative emotions might enable an individual to overcome internal inhibitors to offending.”
MethodSuicide and cancer: Where do we go from here?
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Depression and stress: a biopsychosocial exploration of evolved functions and mechanisms
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“Moreover, as depression worsens, escape motives can focus more on escaping the state of mind of depression - that is the pain of the depression, rather than external events (Gilbert and Allan, 1998) and such escape motives are strongly linked to suicide (Baumeister, 1990).”
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“24 21 This is supported by the extant literature, which has reported associations between defeat and entrapment, and suicidal behaviors in those with PTSD. 25,26 Hopelessness is a robust risk factor for suicidal behaviors, representing pessimism for the future.”
Psychache as a mediator in the relationship between perfectionism and suicidality.
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“All rights rese Modern accounts of suicide such as Williams’ entrapment theory [4] and Baumeister’s view of suicide as an escape from the aversive self [5], see it as a flight from irresolvable problems.”
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“Baumeister (25) proposed a theory of suicidal behavior in which escaping from painful self-awareness is the primary reason individuals attempt suicide.”
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“This is consistent with suicide theorists’ positions that internal psychological pain (Klonsky & May, 2015), aversive self-awareness (Baumeister, 1990), and self-hatred (Joiner, 2005) are what drive the desire to die.”
ResultDimensions of Perfectionism, Hopelessness, and Attempted Suicide in a Sample of Alcoholics
Hewitt, P. L., Norton, G. R., Flett, G. L., Callander, L., & Cowan, T. (1998) · Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior · doi:10.1111/j.1943-278x.1998.tb00975.x · Cited by 87
Experiential Avoidance and Emotion Regulation in Borderline Personality Disorder
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“Shame and related self-focused emotions that lead to an unpleasant sense of self-awareness might be particularly potent triggers of behaviors related to EA (e.g., suicide attempts; Baumeister 1990; self-harm; Chapman et al. 2006).”
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“These results may also be further explained according to the escape from self-theory [61], when individuals perceive a discrepancy between their current situations and expectations, they seek to escape from the self (i.”
BackgroundCollaborating to Prevent Suicide: A Clinical‐Research Perspective
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“Specifically, it is theorized that suicidal individuals have a strong desire to escape their own experience of negative affect by entering into a relatively numb, deconstructed state, and it is this state that is thought to immediately precede an increased willingness to attempt suicide (Baumeister 1990).”
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“Research suggests that suicide functions as a means of escaping intense emotional distress (Baumeister, 1990; Shneidman, 1998).”
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“Accordingly, in models of suicidal behavior that included a disinhibitory factor, impulsivity appeared to increase risk when combined with depression [84,85].”
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“Not only may this lead to maladaptive coping (e.g. use of drugs, alcohol or suicide as escape; Baumeister 1990), but in so far as they are unable to get away from their own thoughts, they are in an “arrested flight” situation.”
BackgroundPerceived effectiveness of NSSI in achieving functions on severity and suicide risk
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“Repeated experiences of relief from unbearable distress via NSSI may then increase the extrapolation to suicide serving a similar escape (Baumeister, 1990).”
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The internal suicide debate hypothesis: exploring the life versus death struggle
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“Specifically, individuals with a history of poorly planned suicide attempts demonstrated a shortsighted preference for immediate over delayed rewards, echoing Baumeister’s conceptualization of a focus on immediate outcomes as a feature of the suicidal state (Baumeister, 1990).”
BackgroundThe role of perspective taking in anger arousal
Mohr, P. B., Howells, K., Gerace, A., Day, A., & Wharton, M. E. (2007) · Personality and Individual Differences · doi:10.1016/j.paid.2006.12.019 · Cited by 83
“This explanation is also consistent with Baumeister’s (1990) work on self-regulation breakdown, which suggests that under certain conditions, such as a state of negative affective arousal, individuals experience a state of cognitive deconstruction characterised by a disengaging from the self-system.”
ResultZeifman, R. J., Singhal, N., SANTOS, R. G. D., Sanches, R. F., Osório, F. D. L., Hallak, J. E. C., & Weissman, C. R. (2020) · Psychopharmacology · doi:10.1007/s00213-020-05692-9 · Cited by 83
“Additionally, in line with theoretical (e.g., Baumeister 1990) and empirical (e.g., Ellis and Rufino 2016) research suggesting that suicidality functions as a means of avoiding emotional distress (i.e., experiential avoidance; Hayes et al. 2012), observational studies have found increases in…”
ResultThe ABC’s of Suicide Risk Assessment: Applying a Tripartite Approach to Individual Evaluations
Harris, K. M., Syu, J.-J., Lello, O. D., Chew, Y. L. E., Willcox, C. H., & Ho, R. (2015) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0127442 · Cited by 93
Self‐Awareness, Task Failure, and Disinhibition: How Attentional Focus Affects Eating
Heatherton, T. F., Polivy, J., Herman, C. P., & Baumeister, R. F. (1993) · Journal of Personality · doi:10.1111/j.1467-6494.1993.tb00278.x · Cited by 83
Self-citationWork and suicide: An interdisciplinary systematic literature review
Howard, M. C., Follmer, K. B., Smith, M. B., Tucker, R. P., & Zandt, E. C. V. (2021) · Journal of Organizational Behavior · doi:10.1002/job.2519 · Cited by 96
“Suicidal thoughts and behaviors are believed to exist on a continuum from passive thoughts of death to death by suicide, which undergirds most prominent theories of suicide (Baumeister, 1990; Joiner, 2005; Shneidman, 1977, 1993; van Orden et al., 2010).”
BackgroundMethodSuicide Risk and Coping Styles in Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Patients
Amir, M., Kaplan, Z., Efroni, R., & Kotler, M. (1999) · Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics · doi:10.1159/000012316 · Cited by 82
Revisiting impulsivity in suicide: Implications for civil liability of third parties
Smith, A. R., Witte, T. K., Teale, N. E., King, S. L., Bender, T., & Joiner, T. E. (2008) · Behavioral Sciences & the Law · doi:10.1002/bsl.848 · Cited by 83
Personality traits as correlates of suicide attempts and suicidal ideation in young adults
Brezo, J., Paris, J., Tremblay, R. E., Vitaro, F., Zoccolillo, M., Hébert, M., & Turecki, G. (2005) · Psychological Medicine · doi:10.1017/s0033291705006719 · Cited by 82
“Predisposition to suicidal behaviors (SBs) has been linked to a number of risk factors including sociodemographic, psychiatric, genetic, and relational ones (Baumeister, 1990; Gould et al. 1998; Statham et al. 1998; Groholt et al. 2000; Turecki, 2001; Kelly et al. 2004; Lalovic et al. 2004).”
BackgroundEntrapment as a mediator of suicide crises
Li, S., Yaseen, Z. S., Kim, H.-J., Briggs, J., Duffy, M., Frechette-Hagan, A., Cohen, L. J., & Galynker, I. I. (2018) · BMC Psychiatry · doi:10.1186/s12888-018-1587-0 · Cited by 81
“This finding is highly consistent with recent theoretical models of suicide including the Cry of Pain Model [14, 58] and the IMV Model of suicide [15], as well as Baumeister’s Escape Theory of Suicide [53] and Gilbert’s phenomenon of ‘arrested flight’ [16] and Galynker’s Narrative Crisis model [6].”
ResultEntrapment and suicide risk: The development of the 4-item Entrapment Scale Short-Form (E-SF)
De Beurs, D., Cleare, S., Wetherall, K., Eschle-Byrne, S., Ferguson, E., B O'Connor, D., & C O'Connor, R. (2020) · Psychiatry Research · doi:10.1016/j.psychres.2020.112765 · Cited by 77
“Internal entrapment relates to the concept of Baumeister's escape from self (Baumeister, 1990).”
BackgroundEvaluating panic-specific factors in the relationship between suicide and panic disorder
Schmidt, N. B., Woolaway-Bickel, K., & Bates, M. J. (2001) · Behaviour Research and Therapy · doi:10.1016/s0005-7967(00)00034-6 · Cited by 81
Taylor, P. J., Gooding, P. A., Wood, A. M., Johnson, J., & Tarrier, N. (2011) · Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior · doi:10.1111/j.1943-278x.2011.00029.x · Cited by 91
“This finding runs counter to what might be predicted from escape-focused models of suicide (e.g., Baumeister, 1990).”
BackgroundResultExtreme mass homicide: From military massacre to genocide
Dutton, D. G., Boyanowsky, E. O., & Bond, M. H. (2004) · Aggression and Violent Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.avb.2004.06.002 · Cited by 79
“In a similar vein, Dutton and Yamini (1995) discuss bdeconstructed thinking,Q a concept developed by Baumeister (1990) to explain suicides and in which higher senses of social meaning are lost in a devolving focus on concrete actions and a loss of higher meaning associations.”
Kashdan, T. B., Breen, W. E., & Julian, T. (2010) · Behavior Therapy · doi:10.1016/j.beth.2009.09.003 · Cited by 85
“In the extreme, avoidance-based strategies may increase the risk for suicide among trauma survivors in an ultimate attempt to " escape the self " (Baumeister, 1990).”
BackgroundLeeman, R. F., Toll, B. A., Taylor, L. A., & Volpicelli, J. R. (2009) · Psychology of Addictive Behaviors · doi:10.1037/a0017129 · Cited by 80
“Baumeister (1990), however, argued that people experiencing intense sadness will often seek states of lower selfawareness, sometimes through alcohol use.”
Britton, P. C., Williams, G. C., & Conner, K. R. (2008) · Journal of Clinical Psychology · doi:10.1002/jclp.20430 · Cited by 79
“Journal of Clinical Psychology DOI 10.1002/jclp Discussing options may be particularly beneficial for clients with acute suicidal ideation because the suicidal state is characterized by a lack of critical thinking (for a review, see Baumeister, 1990).”
BackgroundInfluentialTurton, H., Berry, K., Danquah, A., & Pratt, D. (2021) · Journal of Affective Disorders Reports · doi:10.1016/j.jadr.2021.100136 · Cited by 80
Appraisals and Suicidality: The Mediating Role of Defeat and Entrapment
Taylor, P. J., Wood, A. M., Gooding, P., & Tarrier, N. (2010) · Archives of Suicide Research · doi:10.1080/13811118.2010.494138 · Cited by 79
“This links with the general idea that suicide functions as a form of escape (Baumeister, 1990).”
BackgroundTesting the Interpersonal Theory of Suicide: The Moderating Role of Hopelessness
Hagan, C. R., Podlogar, M. C., Chu, C., & Joiner, T. E. (2015) · International Journal of Cognitive Therapy · doi:10.1521/ijct.2015.8.2.99 · Cited by 94
Does school-related burnout influence problematic Facebook use?
Walburg, V., Mialhes, A., & Moncla, D. (2016) · Children and Youth Services Review · doi:10.1016/j.childyouth.2016.01.009 · Cited by 81
“Several studies have shown that the implications of this concept can include selfdestructive behaviors such as suicide (Baumeister, 1990) and eating disorders (Heatherton & Baumeister, 1991).”
BackgroundOn The Sources of Self-Knowledge: The Perceived Primacy of Self-Reflection
Sedikides, C., & Skowronski, J. J. (1995) · Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology · doi:10.1521/jscp.1995.14.3.244 · Cited by 79
Cognitive and affective reasons to expatriate and work adjustment of expatriate academics
Selmer, J., & Lauring, J. (2013) · International Journal of Cross Cultural Management · doi:10.1177/1470595813485382 · Cited by 78
“It has also been seen as a drive to satisfy physiological and psychological human needs (Berkman et al., 1997). Expatriates may be motivated to choose an international assignment to fulfil future objectives or because they see going abroad as an objective in itself. Or put in different terms, humans sometimes act in o…”
BackgroundO’Connor, R. C., & Forgan, G. S. (2007) · Journal of Rational-Emotive & Cognitive-Behavior Therapy · doi:10.1007/s10942-007-0057-2 · Cited by 77
“These findings support the Cry of Pain Hypothesis (Williams & Pollock, 2001) and Escape Theory (Baumeister, 1990) as they suggest that concern about other people’s high expectations for one’s behavior is associated with suicidal thinking.”
BackgroundDeutrom, J., Katos, V., & Ali, R. (2021) · Behaviour and Information Technology · doi:10.1080/0144929x.2021.1973107 · Cited by 84
“This is consistent with Baumeister’s Self-Escape Theory, which suggests that when individuals perceive a discrepancy between their current situation and their expectations, they seek to escape from the self to eliminate these negative emotions (Baumeister 1990).”
ResultThe Relationship of Social Exclusion at Work With Self-Defeating Behavior and Turnover
Renn, R. W., Allen, D. G., & Huning, T. M. (2012) · The Journal of Social Psychology · doi:10.1080/00224545.2012.723642 · Cited by 81
“One psychological defense mechanism linked to social exclusion is a deconstructed state: a psychological defense reaction used to avoid self-awareness of acute emotional distress associated with a personal failure (Baumeister, 1990; Twenge et al., 2003; Williams, 2001).”
BackgroundInfluentialSyme, K., Garfield, Z. H., & Hagen, E. H. (2015) · Evolution and Human Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2015.10.005 · Cited by 79
“Most theories of SB, in contrast, involve proximate explanations, such as escaping psychological pain (e.g., Baumeister, 1990; Brown et al., 2002), which we will test in a future publication.”
Perfectionism, coping, and depression symptomatology in a clinical sample
Hewitt, P. L., Flett, G. L., & Endler, N. S. (1995) · Clinical Psychology & Psychotherapy · doi:10.1002/cpp.5640020105 · Cited by 74
Wedig, M., & Nock, M. (2010) · Psychiatry Research · doi:10.1016/j.psychres.2009.05.010 · Cited by 79
“Interestingly, a similar escape function has been proposed to be the primary drive for suicidal behavior (Baumeister, 1990).”
BackgroundDecision-Making Competence and Attempted Suicide
Szanto, K., de Bruin, W. B., Parker, A. M., Hallquist, M. N., Vanyukov, P. M., & Dombrovski, A. Y. (2015) · The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry · doi:10.4088/jcp.15m09778 · Cited by 75
Metadata
- Authors
- Baumeister, R. F.
- Affiliations
- Case Western Reserve University (US)
- Corresponding author
- Baumeister, Roy F.
- ORCID
- Baumeister, Roy F.
- Venue
- Psychological Review
- Published
- 1990
- Volume
- 97
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 90-113
- ISSN
- 0033-295X (ISSN-L)
- 1939-1471
- OpenAlex
- W2098559214
- Cited by
- 1,919
- References
- 212
- Citations by year
- 2026: 91 · 2025: 137 · 2024: 129 · 2023: 116 · 2022: 100 · 2021: 88 · 2020: 105 · 2019: 88 · 2018: 89 · 2017: 95 · 2016: 78 · 2015: 92 · 2014: 85 · 2013: 81 · 2012: 67
- FWCI
- 13.21
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Psychological Review (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Suicide and Self-Harm Studies
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Death Anxiety and Social Exclusion
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Psychological Treatments and Disorders
- Keywords
- suicide, self-awareness, negative affect, internal attribution, self-justification, disinhibition, irrationality, meaning, temporal focus, concrete thinking, cognitive rigidity
- MeSH terms
- Depressive Disorder, Escape Reaction, Humans, Self Concept, Suicide, Suicide, Attempted
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