PREDICTORS AND SUICIDE IDEATION AMONG UNIVERSITY STUDENTS IN NAIROBI COUNTY-KENYA

Abstract

Suicide ideation is a public health concern which is perceived as a vital precursor to suicide attempts and actualization. In Kenya, the rate at which the number of deaths by suicide is growing among the young adults in the universities is worrying. Majority of these cases involve university students in Nairobi County. The main purpose of this study is to assess the relationship between three predictor variables (Self-Esteem, Academic Stress, Social Anxiety) and suicide ideation among university students in Nairobi County. The specific objectives were; to determine the relationship between Self-Esteem and suicide ideation among university students, to establish the relationship between Academic Stress and suicide ideation, to determine the relationship between Social Anxiety and suicide ideation and to suggest interventions and coping strategies on suicide Ideation among these students. A quantitative research method was adopted using a correlational research design. The study was guided by two theories; The Interpersonal Theory of Suicide Behaviour and Integrated motivational-volitional model of suicidal behaviour (IMV). The target population was 128,984 students. The sample size was 398 respondents arrived at using Yamane’s formula. Multi-stage sampling procedure was applied in selecting 5 universities from which the sample size of the students was derived. In the first stage, stratified sampling was used to select 1 public university, 2 private universities managed by religious congregation and 2 private universities not managed by religious congregation. Finally, simple random sampling technique was used in selecting students from each of these universities. Questionnaires were used to collect the data. Using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS version 25), descriptive statistics was applied and data were presented in tabular form. Pearson’s product moment correlation was used to establish the relationships between these predictors and suicide ideation among university students in Nairobi County. The results were; there is a moderate negative correlation between self-esteem and suicide ideation, a moderate positive correlation between academic stress and suicide ideation and a weak but almost moderate positive correlation between social anxiety and suicide ideation. The study concluded that there is a relationship between these predictors and suicide ideation. The study recommended some ways of coping with suicide thoughts. Therefore, this study is hoped to be of significant to; ministry of education, policy makers, university administrators, psychologists and university students by providing more knowledge on suicide and relationship between suicide and the three predictors (self-esteem, academic stress and social anxiety).