Childhood Maltreatment and Suicide Risk in Migrant Psychiatric Inpatients: The Mediating Role of Depressive Symptoms

Abstract

Background:

Migrants are at increased risk for psychiatric disorders and suicidality due to cumulative adversities across all phases of migration. Childhood maltreatment is a well-known risk factor for depression and suicidal behavior, yet its specific contribution among migrant psychiatric patients remains insufficiently explored.

Aims:

This study examined the associations between different forms of childhood maltreatment, depressive symptoms, and suicidal ideation in migrant inpatients, and tested whether depression mediates these relationships.

Methods:

In this cross-sectional bi-center study, 102 migrant inpatients hospitalized in two university psychiatric units in Rome were assessed using structured interviews. Childhood maltreatment was evaluated with the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ), depressive symptoms with the Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II), and suicidal ideation with the Columbia-Suicide Severity Rating Scale (C-SSRS). Group differences by continent of origin were analyzed using ANOVAs, while Pearson correlations examined associations among variables. Mediation models tested whether depressive symptoms mediated the link between childhood maltreatment and suicidal ideation.

Results:

Over one-third of participants reported recent suicidal ideation, and depressive symptoms were in the moderate range. Migrants from Asia showed higher suicidal ideation compared to Europeans, while participants from the Americas reported more severe depressive symptoms. All forms of childhood maltreatment were intercorrelated and significantly associated with both depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation. Mediation analyses showed complete mediation for emotional abuse and partial mediation for physical and sexual abuse.

Conclusions:

Findings underscore the need for trauma-informed and culturally sensitive psychiatric care addressing early adversity, depressive symptoms, and migration-related stressors to reduce suicide risk in this vulnerable population.