Social integration and suicide-related ideation from a social network perspective: A longitudinal study among inner-city African Americans

Social network density, as measured by the extent to which network members know each other, was examined to determine whether it is associated with suicide-related ideation and plan approximately 3 years later. Eight hundred and nineteen African Americans were interviewed at Wave 1 (1997-1999) and Wave 4 (2001-2003) of the Self-Help In Eliminating Life-Threatening Diseases (SHIELD) study, a HIV preventive intervention study in Baltimore, MD. Multinomial logistic regression models were used to compare risks of suicide-related ideation and plan at Wave 4 by Wave 1 density. Even after adjusting for baseline sociodemographic characteristics and depressive symptoms, individuals with a lower level of density were three times more likely to report suicide-related ideation and plan in the past year at Wave 4. The findings reinforce the importance of social integration among inner-city African Americans from a social network perspective. Future research should examine the mechanisms associated with this relationship and other social network constructs.