Suicide knowledge and intention to intervene: college students

Objective: The revised Willingness to Intervene against Suicide questionnaire and the Expanded Revised Facts on Suicide Quiz were employed to examine the relationship between college students’ knowledge about suicide and intention to intervene. Participants: College students (n = 515) participated, a majority being women and Caucasian. Methods: Participants completed an online survey. Data were analyzed in SPSS. Results: College students have poor knowledge of suicide facts; however, this low level of accurate knowledge was not associated with intention to intervene with a suicidal person. Attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, sex, and no previous suicide attempt were all significant predictors of intention to intervene. Conclusions: These results challenge the notion that one must be well-informed in order to intend to take action.