The Influence of a Culturally Informed Suicide Prevention Training on School Mental Health Professionals’ Beliefs

Abstract

Youth suicide is a significant public health concern in the United States, and students from culturally minoritized groups may be at higher risk of suicidality and suicide ideation. As key stakeholders in comprehensive suicide prevention efforts, school mental health professionals need targeted professional development to help them address the mental health needs of all their students. The study aimed to pilot the Culturally Responsive Suicide Prevention in Schools (CRSPiS) professional development session and evaluate its impact on school mental health professionals’ beliefs about the influence of culture on suicidal thoughts, behaviors, communication, and response. A pre-and post-training design was used. Professionals attended the pilot of a structured 3-hour professional development session. Immediately after the training school mental health professionals who participated in the CRSPiS session reported stronger beliefs in the influence of culture on suicide ideation and response. Participants’ beliefs did not vary by previous hours of suicide training and years of experience. CRSPiS training may help improve professionals’ ability to respond to suicide and conduct assessments in culturally relevant ways.