Abstract
Depression and suicide tendency among campus youths have emerged as significant concerns in recent years. Depression is a common health condition characterized by persistent sadness, loss of interest, and feelings of hopelessness. Among youths, particularly, those enrolled in educational institutions, the prevalence of depression is alarmingly high. This study examined depression and suicide tendency among youths on Benson Idahosa University, Heritage Campus and the University of Benin, Ekehuan Campus, both in Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria. The objective of the study was to examine the perception of youths in university campuses regarding; the relationship between depression and suicide tendencies; the causal or risk factors of depression-induced suicidality; prevalence of suicidalities, toward suggesting suitable control strategies to the problem in the selected campuses. The study employed survey research design, with a comprising population of youths who were purely undergraduates of the stated Nigerian Universities. Using Taro Yamane’s formula for sample size determination, at <0.05 level of significance, a sample size of 400 was obtained, from the combined total student-population of 56,000 in both institutions, but a return rate of 352 was recorded. The study engaged three instruments for data collection namely, Depression and Suicidality Research Questionnaire (DSRQ), which was used surveyed 352 virtual respondents; Depression and Suicidality Key Informant Interview-Guide (DSKII) for four (4) Support staff (2counsellors, 1psychiatric doctor and 1psychiatric nurse), with the Depression and Suicidality Research In-depth Interview-Guide (DSIDI) for eight (8) campus-youth-survivors of depression-induced suicidality. DSRQ was structured validated and administered to respondents through online survey-tool crafted from the google-form web-application. Data was collected, analyzed and presented in tables of Simple Percentages with frequency counts. Data from DSKII and DSIDI were content analyzed and organized using thematic arrangements based on key concepts from the study objectives. Findings based on the study objectives revealed that depression and suicidal tendency are interconnected: it was further observed that constant feeling of sadness, is a risk-factor of depression-oriented suicidality, meanwhile, low self-esteem was found to be one of the bases of self-harm among youths in the campuses; depression is a major causal-factor that leads of untimely death of victims, while bullying by friends and peers can trigger self-inflicted death among students-youths. It was equally observed that other risk factors associated with suicide as a self-destructive behavior included depression, frustration, alcoholism, hopelessness, substance-abuse, lethal weapons’ possession, terminal illness, loss-of-loved ones, Pre-existing family psychiatric conditions and low school achievement. Therefore, the study recommends that University authority should develop suicide-prevention strategies, such as counseling and the organization of follow-up care services for suicide-survivors in campuses in order to address the alarming situation. Finally, arranging awareness-building programs among parents and students regarding mental health issues can also help social stigma reduction, regarding suicidal death especially among youths. More works need to be done by governmental and non-governmental organizations, school administration and parents to increase awareness of the symptoms and manifestations of depression and suicidality within youth contexts and the wider milieu in Nigerian academia.
Keywords: Depression, Suicide Tendency, Youths, Campuses
Wordcounts: 488
