FACTORS INFLUENCING SUICIDAL IDEATION AMONG KOREAN UNIVERSITY STUDENTS

Korea has the highest suicide rate among the OECD countries, and the suicide rate is highest among young adults in their 20s, most of whom are university students. Therefore, suicide among Korean university students is a public health issue that is of interest to us. The purpose of this study is to investigate the factors affecting the suicidal ideation of university students in Korea, and to use them as a basis to establish effective intervention for university suicide prevention through it. This was a cross-sectional descriptive study using convenience sampling method. The participants were 344 university students at universities in S and G cities. Data were collected with a structured questionnaire and analyzed using descriptive analysis, t-test, ANOVA, Pearson correlation coefficients, and hierarchical regression analysis using with the SPSS/Win 23.0 program. There was a significant correlation between depression (r=.45, p<.001), drinking alcohol (r=.14, p=.008), social support (r=-.26, p<.001), quality of life (r=-.46, p<.001), and suicidal ideation. In the first step of hierarchical regression analysis, satisfaction of school life (β=.198, p<.001) was the significant factor influencing the suicidal ideation. Explanatory power was 25.2%. In the second step of the hierarchical regression analysis, absence of parents (β=-.095, p=.044), depression (β=.247, p<.001), quality of life (β=-.280, p<.001), and explanatory power were increased to 42.0%. The results of the study indicate the need to actively identify the group of university students in their 20s with high risk of suicide through continuous evaluation of depression, and to improve the quality of life as a method of preventing suicide. In addition, the effect of absence of parents on the suicidal ideation among Korean university students suggests that parental support may play an important role in suicide prevention.