Incorporating a trauma-informed approach in youth suicide research

Adolescent suicide is a serious public health problem in Chile: It is the leading cause of death in adolescents. Advancing research in youth suicidal behaviors is needed to understand how to reduce the rates of suicide. Given the high prevalence of suicidal behaviors and suicide, and the disparities in access to mental health services, school-based youth suicide researchers must approach participants, families, and communities with care. Special attention must be given to suicide- and victimization-related trauma. Exposure to suicide-related research materials (e.g., questions) and to suicidal experiences may elicit trauma responses in participants and/or staff. We posit that a trauma-informed (TI) approach enhances the investigators' response to the ethical mandate of minimizing harm and maximizing benefit for research participants in youth suicide studies. In this chapter, we describe how the integration of the TI ethos can be organized based on its four key elements: (1) realization of the widespread impact of trauma and awareness of the paths to recovery; (2) recognition of the signs and symptoms of trauma; (3) integration of knowledge about trauma in all procedures and practices; and (4) active prevention of re-traumatization. We illustrate this process with examples from our school-based adolescent suicidal behaviors research. Our goal is to help other researchers implement culturally sensitive, trauma-informed youth suicide research that is attuned to participants, staff, and communities.