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Preventing Suicide in African American Adolescents

Not Applicable
Active, not recruiting
Conditions
Suicide
Interventions
Behavioral: Robinson's Culturally Adapted Coping with Stress Course (A-CWS)
Behavioral: Standard Care Control Condition
Registration Number
NCT04253002
Lead Sponsor
DePaul University
Brief Summary

The overarching aim of the Success Over Stress Prevention Project is to reduce African American youth suicide. This study examines the impact of a 15-session, group-delivered, culturally-grounded, cognitive-behavioral intervention (i.e., PI Robinson's Adapted-Coping with Stress Course \[A-CWS\]), on the outcomes of interest, when it is delivered by social workers who are indigenous to the school system. The main objectives of this project are to (a) determine whether the intervention is effective when facilitated by social workers who are indigenous to the school system and (b) enhance resilience, increase adaptive coping strategies, and reduce both intrapersonal and interpersonal violence among youth receiving the prevention intervention. It is expected that increases in adaptive coping will lead to an increased ability for youth to manage stressors, thereby decreasing the incidence of suicide and violence among the youth. In addition, it is expected that evidence of the intervention's effectiveness, when facilitated by social workers who are indigenous to the school system, will lead to greater dissemination and sustainability of the intervention, thus, providing access to effective intervention resources to greater numbers of African American youth.

Detailed Description

This study will establish the effectiveness of Robinson's Adapted-Coping with Stress Course (A-CWS) and test hypotheses pertaining to the mechanism of change by which the A-CWS reduces suicide risk. Additionally, this study is expected to augment current theoretical models of adolescent suicidality. This effectiveness trial will inform procedures for scaling up efficacious, high quality, and culturally-grounded suicide prevention programs for low-resourced, urban African American youth; as such, this study is practice relevant and expected to inform best practices for the prevention of suicide among African American adolescents. The specific aims are:

1. To examine the effectiveness of the A-CWS intervention, as delivered by social workers who are indigenous to the school system, to reduce active suicidal ideation, within a sample of low-resourced, urban African American adolescents.

2. To understand the mechanism by which the A-CWS intervention reduces suicide risk for low-resourced, urban African American adolescents.

3. To establish the fidelity of an evidence-based, culturally-grounded coping with stress intervention (i.e., the A-CWS), developed for low-resourced, urban African American adolescents, delivered by social workers indigenous to the school system.

4. To understand the extent that thwarted belongingness, perceived burdensomeness, and socio-ecological factors influence the development of active suicidal ideation.

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status
ACTIVE_NOT_RECRUITING
Sex
All
Target Recruitment
512
Inclusion Criteria
  • Students: Enrolled 9th grade student at time of initial enrollment at participating high school
  • Parents/guardians: Child enrolled in study
  • Teachers: Student enrolled in study
Exclusion Criteria
  • Not a 9th grade student at time of initial enrollment
  • No parent/legal guardian permission
  • For parents and teachers: no students enrolled in study

Study & Design

Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Study Design
PARALLEL
Arm && Interventions
GroupInterventionDescription
Robinson's Culturally Adapted Coping with Stress CourseRobinson's Culturally Adapted Coping with Stress Course (A-CWS)-
Standard Care Control ConditionStandard Care Control Condition-
Primary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Change in Suicide IdeationAssessments will be administered through study completion, an average of every six months.

Suicide ideation will be measured using the Suicidal Ideation Questionnaire (SIQ-JR), a 15-item measure of adolescents' distress and suicidal intent. Scale scores range from 0 to 90, with higher scores meaning a worse outcome (i.e., greater suicide ideation).

Secondary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Change in Adaptive CopingAssessments will be administered through study completion, an average of every six months.

Adaptive Coping will be measured using The Adolescent Coping Orientation for Problem Behaviors (A-COPE), which is a 54 item self-report questionnaire that measures coping strategies among adolescents

Change in HopeAssessments will be administered through study completion, an average of every six months.

Hope will be measured using the The Children's Hope Scale (CHS), a six-item self-report measure of children's perceived interpersonal competencies, including the belief that their goals can be met.

Change in HopelessnessAssessments will be administered through study completion, an average of every six months.

Hopelessness will be measured using the Hopelessness Scale for Children (HSC). The HSC consists of 17 true-false items. The domains measured include: feelings about the future, loss of motivation, and future expectations

Trial Locations

Locations (6)

Richard T. Crane High School

🇺🇸

Chicago, Illinois, United States

DePaul University

🇺🇸

Chicago, Illinois, United States

Dunbar Vocational Career Academy

🇺🇸

Chicago, Illinois, United States

Orr Academy High School

🇺🇸

Chicago, Illinois, United States

Wendell Phillips Academy High School

🇺🇸

Chicago, Illinois, United States

Proviso East High School

🇺🇸

Maywood, Illinois, United States

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