PTSD study identifies suicide-risk correlates in 80-person sample

In a study of 80 people with posttraumatic stress disorder, prior suicide attempts, psychiatric comorbidity, PTSD re-experiencing symptoms and negative cognitions about the self were significantly associated with suicide risk. Researchers used correlation and hierarchical regression analyses to examine these relationships in an open-access article published in BMC Psychology on 11 September 2026.

The participants were recruited through purposeful sampling and completed three study measures: the Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist for DSM-5, the Posttraumatic Cognitions Inventory and the Suicide Behaviors Questionnaire-Revised. The analysis considered PTSD symptom clusters, negative posttraumatic cognitions and beliefs, suicide-attempt history and comorbidity with other psychiatric disorders. The reported results identify statistical associations within this sample rather than causal effects or a test of whether the factors predict future suicide attempts.

Re-experiencing was the only PTSD symptom cluster that remained significantly associated with suicide risk in the hierarchical regression analysis. Among the dimensions evaluated with the Posttraumatic Cognitions Inventory, only negative cognitions about the self showed a significant association. These results distinguish the symptom-level and cognitive findings from the broader PTSD measures: the study does not report that every symptom cluster or every posttraumatic-cognition dimension was associated with suicide risk.

Clinical factors were also associated with suicide risk. A history of suicide attempts and psychiatric comorbidity were significant correlates alongside re-experiencing symptoms and negative self-cognitions. The authors concluded that the findings emphasize the relevance of symptom-level, cognitive and clinical factors in suicide risk among people with PTSD and may inform future suicide-risk assessment and intervention research. However, the study included a purposively selected sample of 80 participants, and its correlational design cannot establish causation, determine whether changing any identified factor would alter risk, or show that the relationships generalize to larger and more diverse populations.

Subject of Research: Correlates of suicide risk among people with posttraumatic stress disorder

Article Title: Examining suicide risk correlates in individuals with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

Article References: Tayyar Parvin, M., Zargarinejad, G., Zahedi Tajrishi, K., & Shabani, A. (2026). Examining suicide risk correlates in individuals with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). BMC Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-026-05535-w

Image Credits: AI Generated

DOI: 10.1186/s40359-026-05535-w

Keywords: PTSD, suicide risk, re-experiencing symptoms, negative self-cognitions, suicide attempts, psychiatric comorbidity, posttraumatic cognitions, hierarchical regression, observational study, Examining, suicide, risk