Jessica Schwartzman
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drjessicaphd.bsky.social
Jessica Schwartzman
@drjessicaphd.bsky.social
Assistant Professor | Depression & suicide prevention in autistic people | CBPR | Latinx mental health | All opinions my own

My research lab: https://www.chla.org/research/lab/training-and-research-empower-neurodiversity-trend
NIMH
July 5, 2025 at 6:45 AM
10/10 recommend this
May 4, 2025 at 12:14 PM
What does this mean?
Autistic people across age groups constitute a high-priority group for suicide prevention!

Appropriate assessments & evaluation of system-level programs that effectively address the problem of preventable death by suicide in this community are essential.
March 17, 2025 at 11:00 PM
Limitations:
Pooled sampling across different groups complicate the generalizability and implications of this work.

Sample enriched for STB and mental health needs.

Not representative of all autistic people and their families, among other limitations (see paper).
March 17, 2025 at 11:00 PM
Our results:

(6) The youngest age of suicide attempt was 7 years in this sample.

(7) The average ages of first/initial, most lethal, and most recent suicide attempts in youth (n = 24) and adults (n = 42) were 16.6, 19.2, and 20.8 years old, respectively.
March 17, 2025 at 11:00 PM
Our results:

(4) Sex was NOT a significant risk factor for suicidal ideation, behavior, or self-injury.

(5) Increases in lifetime suicidal ideation were observed across older age-groups, with those 18+ reporting more severe and longer-lasting ideation than in youth.
March 17, 2025 at 11:00 PM