Journal article
Experiences of suicidality in PhD students: A mixed methods study
Counselling Psychology Quarterly, Vol.Advanced access
2025
Abstract
Substantial evidence suggests that university students experience poor mental health. However, the majority of previous studies focus on undergraduate student populations and common mental disorders (e.g. depression and anxiety). Less is known about the mental health of PhD students, specifically, their experiences of suicidality. The present study aimed to explore the experiences of suicidality among PhD students in Australia. PhD students across Australian universities were invited to complete an online survey. A sample of 299 participants completed the suicidality measure administered (Suicide Behavior Questionnaire-Revised), and results indicate that approximately 37% of participants were at risk of suicide. A subsample of 79 participants (58% at risk of suicide) provided textual response to elaborate on their suicidality experiences, and qualitative content analysis indicated that there were experiences of suicidality that were unrelated to the PhD but also experiences of suicidality that were related to the PhD. Several risk factors for suicidality were mentioned by participants, including PhD pressures and stress, and anxiety about the future. Protective factors that were mentioned included the PhD providing a sense of purpose and the presence of social and psychological support. These results call for action in higher education systems, with the findings suggesting opportunities for universities to implement strategies that better safeguard the mental health of PhD students.
Details
- Title
- Experiences of suicidality in PhD students: A mixed methods study
- Authors
- Jolene A Cox (Corresponding Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Centre for Human Factors and Systems ScienceChristina Driver (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Thompson InstituteBrendan T Hutchinson (Author) - Vrije Universiteit AmsterdamJake Bragg (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Centre for Human Factors and Systems ScienceGemma Read (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Centre for Human Factors and Systems Science
- Publication details
- Counselling Psychology Quarterly, Vol.Advanced access
- Publisher
- Routledge
- DOI
- 10.1080/09515070.2025.2572565
- ISSN
- 1469-3674
- Copyright note
- © 2025 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. The terms on which this article has been published allow the posting of the Accepted Manuscript in a repository by the author(s) or with their consent.
- Data Availability
- The data analysed in the present study is not publicly available due to our approved human research ethics requirements. The informed consent in the present study indicates that non-identifiable data will only be accessible to the named researchers on the project.
- Grant note
- The study received funding support from the School of Health, University of the Sunshine Coast.
- Organisation Unit
- Centre for Human Factors and Systems Science; Thompson Institute; School of Health - Psychology
- Language
- English
- Record Identifier
- 991170245902621
- Output Type
- Journal article
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