Suicidality and its relationships with individual, family, peer, and psychopathology factors among adolescents with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.
One in eight Taiwanese teens with ADHD reported suicidality—check depression and bullying status first.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Wen-Jiun et al. (2016) asked Taiwanese teens with ADHD about suicidal thoughts. They also asked about bullying, family life, and mood.
The teens filled out forms. One in eight said they had thought about or tried suicide.
What they found
Older teens who bullied others and felt very sad were most at risk. Depression mattered more than ADHD symptoms.
The study did not test an intervention. It simply flagged who needs extra help.
How this fits with other research
Chang et al. (2024) found the same bullying–suicidality link in autistic teens. Both papers say: stop bullying, lower suicide risk.
Arwert et al. (2020) looked at autistic adults. Once depression was counted, other traits no longer predicted suicidality. Depression is the common driver across labels.
Baker et al. (2025) show that kids with both ASD and ADHD have the poorest safety skills. This hints that mixed diagnoses may need even tighter suicide screens.
Why it matters
If you serve teens with ADHD, add three quick items to your intake: age, depression score, and bullying role. When two or three light up, start safety planning right away. No need to wait for a formal trial; the pattern is stable across studies and diagnoses.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
The aim of this study was to examine the prevalence rates of suicidal intent and its correlates among adolescents diagnosed with ADHD in Taiwan. A total of 287 adolescents aged 11-18 years and diagnosed with ADHD participated in this study. Their suicidal ideation and suicide attempts were assessed. Logistic regression analysis was used to examine the associations of suicide with individual, family, peer, ADHD, and psychopathology factors. A total of 12.2% of the participants reported suicidal ideation or a suicide attempt. A logistic regression analysis model showed that adolescents who were older, were bullying perpetrators, and reported high depression level were more likely to have suicidal intent. These three factors were also significantly correlated with suicidal ideation; however, only having high depression level was significantly correlated with suicidal attempts. The results of this study showed that a high proportion of adolescents with ADHD reported suicidal ideation or a suicide attempt. Multiple factors were significantly associated with suicidal intent among adolescents with ADHD. Clinicians, educational professionals, and parents of adolescents with ADHD should monitor the possibility of suicide in adolescents with ADHD who exhibit the correlates of suicidal intent identified in this study.
Research in developmental disabilities, 2016 · doi:10.1016/j.ridd.2016.02.001