Neuropsychological Patterns of Suicide Ideators and Suicide Attempters

Differences in Inhibitory Control

The Go/No-Go task is a cognitive task to assess an individual's ability to inhibit a prepotent response. It is used to measure impulse control and response inhibition. The task requires participants to respond ("Go" response) to one type of stimulus and to withhold or inhibit their response ("No-Go" response) to another type of stimulus. The Go/No-Go task yields measures such as reaction time, accuracy, and the ability to inhibit responses. Reaction times can vary widely, and accuracy is often expressed as a percentage of correct responses. Lower reaction times and higher accuracy in withholding responses (No-Go trials) indicate better inhibitory control and cognitive performance.

Selective Attention and Interference Control

The Stroop task is a cognitive psychology test that evaluates an individual's ability to selectively attend to information while inhibiting interference from irrelevant stimuli. The Stroop task measures the time taken to complete tasks and the accuracy of responses. The primary measures are the time taken to complete the task and the number of errors. Lower completion times and fewer errors indicate better cognitive control and attentional focus. Lower scores (faster completion times and fewer errors) are associated with better outcomes, reflecting more efficient cognitive processing and interference control. Higher scores, if used to quantify errors or time taken, are associated with a worse outcome, indicating greater interference and potentially reduced cognitive control.

Mental abilities like attention, working memory and visuomotor speed as well as mental flexibility

The Trail Making Test (TMT-A/B) is a neuropsychological test that assesses visual attention and task-switching abilities. It consists of two parts (Part A and Part B) and measures the time taken to complete each part. The score is typically represented as the time (in seconds) taken to complete the task. Lower scores (faster completion times) are generally considered better outcomes, indicating more efficient visual attention, processing speed, and cognitive flexibility. Higher scores (longer completion times) may suggest difficulties in these cognitive domains and are typically associated with worse outcomes.

Attention and Concentration Abilities

The D2 Test of Attention and Concentration is a neuropsychological test used to assess selective and sustained attention. It is employed to evaluate an individual's visual scanning, concentration, and information processing speed. The D2 Test involves scoring based on the number of correctly marked items minus the number of errors. The scoring method considers both the quantity and accuracy of responses. The goal is to mark as many target items as possible within a specified time limit while avoiding errors. A higher score is considered a better outcome, indicating more correct responses and effective attention and concentration.

Sociodemographic data

The Sociodemographic Questionnaire (DEMO) is a 30-item questionnaire that was developed to collect sociodemographic (e.g., gender, socioeconomic status, professional status, relationship satisfaction) and health-related data (e.g., medication, inpatient and outpatient treatment).

Diagnostic and Statistical Manual 5 (DSM-V) and International Classification of Diseases 10 (ICD-10) psychiatric disorders

The Mini-DIPS is a short, structured clinical interview for diagnosing mental disorders and is based on the DIPS-OA. The Mini-DIPS allows for a quick yet reliable diagnosis. It is applicable in adulthood and captures lifetime diagnoses, current and past diagnoses, based on the criteria of DSM-5 and ICD-10. The Mini-DIPS covers the mental disorders most commonly observed in clinical settings.