查看文章

Childhood irritability predicts suicidal ideation/attempt (suicidality), but it is unclear whether irritability is an independent and direct risk factor for suicidality or a marker of intermediate mental health symptoms associated with suicidality. This study aimed to identify developmental patterns of childhood irritability and to test whether childhood irritability is directly associated with suicidality or indirectly associated with intermediate mental health symptoms.

One thousand three hundred ninety-three participants from the Québec Longitudinal Study of Child Development were followed from birth to 17 years. Teachers assessed irritability yearly (at 6–12 years) and children self-reported intermediate mental health symptoms (depression, anxiety, disruptiveness, and hyperactivity-impulsivity; at 13 years) and suicidality (at 15 and 17 years).

Four irritability trajectories were identified: low (74.7%), rising (13 …