David Shaffer - Study of Suicide

Study of Suicide

At Maudsley, Shaffer conducted the first epidemiological study of child and early adolescent suicide using the psychological autopsy method. Unexpected—at the time—findings were: the short delay between experiencing a stressor and the act of suicide, the frequency of aggressive behavior, and the suggestions that imitation played a role in youth suicide. These findings would later be confirmed by his much larger controlled study in New York and by others in the United States and throughout the world. Important findings from the New York Study were the very high prevalence of alcohol and substance abuse in older male teens who committed suicide, and the significance of a prior suicide attempt as a predictor in males, but not females, for whom major depression was especially important.

The finding of specific profiles and the almost universal presence of treatable psychiatric disorders among suicide victims suggested that case finding would be a viable method for preventing suicide. However, one approach to this—suicide-awareness educational programs—was found to offer few benefits and potential risks. This stimulated the development of a screening strategy instead. Ultimately, Shaffer led a team of colleagues in creating the Columbia TeenScreen Program. TeenScreen has since became a nationwide program, now run by Shaffer's colleague Laurie Flynn.