Developmental pathways from insomnia to suicidality: A resilience perspective

Abstract

Background: Insomnia has been identified as a potential risk factor for suicidality. However, to date, few studies using the longitudinal-design have examined the underlying mechanism of this relationship. Based on a resilience perspective, this study aimed to investigate the dynamic longitudinal relationships between insomnia, resilience, and suicidality. Methods: A total of 5785 freshmen were sampled from a large-scale health-related cohort among Chinese college students. This study spanned six waves, covering the period from 2020 to 2022. Data from T1 to T4 were used because resilience was not measured at baseline (T0) and T5. The cross-lagged panel models and the latent growth curve mediation model were used to examine the longitudinal dynamic relationships between insomnia, resilience, and suicidality. Results: The results showed that insomnia symptoms and suicidality mutually predicted each other, and resilience played a longitudinal mediating role in linking insomnia symptoms and suicidality. Conclusions: Given that resilience served as a mediator in the relation between insomnia symptoms and suicidality, some resilience-oriented prevention and intervention programs will be helpful in reducing the risk of suicide among university students.