Best Practices for Conducting Research with Suicide Attempt Survivors: Ethical Engagement with Lived Experience

Suicide is a major public health concern. In 2022, over 49,000 adults died by suicide in the United States, which is about one death every 11 minutes. Suicide also remains the leading cause of death for youth 10 to 19. Over the past two decades, suicide rates among youth and young adults in the United States have rapidly increased, leading the Surgeon General to issue a Call to Action urging people to collectively join to reduce suicide rates. Historically, most research on suicide has been conducted in clinical settings among suicide attempt survivors, emphasizing the risks associated with being an attempt survivor and the difficulties of recovery for these survivors. Though necessary, this approach limits our understanding of suicide attempt survivors outside clinical settings and their long-term well-being in their natural environments.To address this gap, this roundtable session will facilitate a conversation about how social work research currently approaches suicide prevention, particularly in engaging with individuals who are considered at an increased risk as suicide attempt survivors. Researchers often express hesitancy in working with suicide attempt survivors due to the challenging process of navigating institutional review boards (IRB) to establish a safety protocol, as there is considerable fearmongering involved. However, it is also crucial to remember our participants' autonomy in research, just as clients do in social work practice. In a recent study conducted with young adult suicide attempt survivors, participants expressed feeling “validated� or even “relieved� when given the chance to share their experiences. Some remarked they would have been surprised if there had been no rigorous safety protocol, as they were aware of their risk based on the previous treatment they received in clinical settings – describing the protocol as a “no-brainer.� Therefore, the discussion will cover the use of safety protocols in suicide research, mainly when working with vulnerable populations such as suicide attempt survivors. First, panelists will facilitate discussions on respecting participant autonomy versus risk mitigation. This will involve how researchers can honor the independence of individuals choosing to volunteer in a study while implementing appropriate safeguards rather than being overly controlling in managing their autonomy. Second, panelists will guide conversations on the proper use of safety plans, including what these plans should look like depending on the population. Lastly, panelists will lead a discussion on addressing the institutional level, where fearmongering often arises in conducting suicide research due to liability concerns or misconceptions about suicide risk. This will include how researchers can educate and provide information to ensure this work is done safely and ethically. We aim to foster an open dialogue to share ideas among researchers at various professional levels and cultivate a supportive environment that promotes suicide research in social work.