The role of personality traits in the understanding of suicide attempt behavior among psychiatric patients

The main objective of the present study is to enrich our understanding regarding the role of personality traits in the explanation of suicide attempt behavior. More specifically, it employs Cloninger's three personality dimensions as a tool for predicting suicide attempt behavior among psychiatric patients. A total of 172 psychiatric outpatients, 80 with a history of suicide attempt and 92 without, participated in the study. Multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) suggests that psychiatric patients with a history of suicide attempt express higher levels of both novelty seeking and harm avoidance than do those without such a history. The findings of the present study confirm the major role played by personality traits in the understanding of suicide attempt behavior among psychiatric patients.