1. Alyssa Kaying Vang, PsyD, LP UW Whitewater August 20-21, 2018
Suicide in Hmong Youth
Alyssa Kaying Vang, PsyD, LP
UW Whitewater
August 20-21, 2018

2. Statistics on suicide:
Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
2nd leading cause of death for youth between ages of in 2016 (up from 3rd place in earlier years)
Percentage of youth treated at US children hospitals for suicidal thoughts, suicidal attempts more than doubled from 2008 to 2015
.66% of all visits vs. 1.82% of all visits

3. Data on Hmong youth and suicide:
Asian-American youth are at the greatest risk for developing suicidal behavior and mental health illness (National Asian American Pacific Islander Mental Health Association, 2007)
Within the last decade, rate of Southeast Asian youth suicide attempts and completion of suicide have increased.
Suicide attempts and completions among Hmong youth in the US have increased significantly but there remains a lack of research (Department of Health and Human Resources, 1999)
Hmong youth are 4 times more likely to have suicidal ideation in their lifetime compared to the general population

4. Hmong youth suicide
September 1998 – May 2001: 8 Hmong teens committed suicide
Media coverage highlighted the negative consequences of the conflict between the Hmong and American cultures
“Lost in America,” Fresno Bee 2002
Only when it is seen as a social problem can it be addressed publicly, not a lot of media coverage, first step is to talk about it

5. Risk factors Hmong: Western:
One or more diagnosable mental or substance abuse disorders (e.g., depression, anxiety)
Life stressors or losses (e.g., academic demands/pressure, friends, family disruption)
Family history of mental or substance abuse disorder
Family history of suicide
Family violence (e.g., emotional neglect, physical or sexual abuse)
Bullying/cyberbullying
Prior suicide attempt
Firearm in home
Intergenerational conflict
Shame, loss of face
Immigration status and acculturation challenges

6. Cultural beliefs around suicide:
Not a social or public health issue
Curse on family by ancestors or other spiritual being
Mandate in life, visa
Reincarnation and the hope for a better life
Lifelong suffering and an inability to cross over

7. Traditional Hmong ways to address suicide:
Dealt within family members
Spiritual ceremony to prevent this to be passed down to the next generation
Health = spiritual and physical components are well
Best left unspoken of

8. Research findings:
Depression decreases with higher levels of ethnic identity
Ethnic identity and intergenerational conflict are significant predictors of depression
Depression and spiritual healing beliefs were predictors of suicide risk, even though risk was low
Protective factors:
Family cohesion
community support
trait optimism
support from health care community

9. Future considerations:
Start and continue the conversation re: suicide within the framework of mental illness
Incorporate both mainstream and Hmong beliefs about suicide in conversations/education
Reduce the stigma, shame, etc around depression and suicide while keeping in mind the challenges of suicide in any population

10. References:
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, CDC 24/7 Saving Lives, Protecting People: Gateway to Health Communication & Social Marketing Practice
Jesilow, P. & Xiong, M. Constructing a social problem: suicide, acculturation, and the Hmong, Hmong Studies Journal 8, 1, 2007.
Vang, T. The Role of Psycho-sociocultural factors in suicide risk among Mong/Hmong youth, Dissertation, Portland State University, Spring
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