The effects of physical and psychological well-being on suicidal ideation.

This study examines a theoretical model of suicidal ideation with physical symptoms (physical well-being) and self-esteem (psychological well-being) as two competitive predicting variables. The national sample of 1,433 cases was drawn in the People's Republic of China in March 1 995. Results indicate that both suicidal ideation and attempt rates are lower in the Chinese population than in other populations studied, and as found in the West, Chinese women are more likely to think about and to attempt suicide than Chinese men. LISREL analysis of the model shows that psychological well-being (self-esteem) is a much stronger predictor of suicidal ideation than physical well-being (physical symptoms), especially when depression is introduced as an intervening variable in the model.