The relationship between childhood trauma and perceived stress with suicidal thoughts in college students

Subject Areas : Health Psychology

Padina Parvaneh Deir ¹ , Fatemeh Forozesh Yekta ²

1 - M.A of Clinical Psychology, Central Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran. Email: [e-mail]
2 - Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology, West Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran. Email: [e-mail]

Received: 2025-02-04 Accepted : 2025-06-01 Published : 2025-07-23

Keywords: childhood trauma, perceived stress, suicidal thoughts, students.,

Abstract :

The aim of this study was to predict suicidal thoughts based on childhood trauma and perceived stress in students of Islamic Azad Universities in Tehran. The statistical population of this study consisted of undergraduate students at Tehran's Azad Universities in the academic year 2024. A sample of 145 people was selected using a three-stage cluster sampling method. Participants responded to the Beck Scale for Suicide Ideation (Beck et al., 1961), the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (Bernstein et al., 2003), and the Perceived Stress Scale (Cohen et al., 1983). Data were analyzed by calculating correlation coefficients and multiple regression by SPSS software version 26. The results of the hypothesis test showed that there was a positive and meaningful relationship between childhood trauma and its components and suicidal thoughts in students. The components of sexual abuse, physical abuse, emotional abuse and physical neglect positively and significantly predicted suicidal thoughts (P<0.05). However, the relationship between emotional neglect was not significant (P>0.05). There was a significant relationship between perceived stress and its components with suicidal thoughts in students. And the component of positive perception of stress negatively predicts suicidal thoughts. The negative perception of stress had a positive effect on this variable (P<0.05). Also, childhood trauma and perceived stress positively predicted suicidal thoughts (P<0.01). 

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