چكيده لاتين
Suicide is one of the most significant mental health concerns among university students and is, unfortunately, following an upward trend. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between childhood trauma, attachment styles, and mental health with suicidal ideation, considering the mediating role of emotion regulation, among Afghan students residing in Isfahan province. Methodologically, this study was descriptive-correlational. The statistical population consisted of all Afghan students residing in Isfahan province during the 2024-2025 academic year, from whom 225 individuals were selected using convenience sampling.
Data were collected using the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (Bernstein et al., 2003), Hazan and Shaver’s Attachment Styles Questionnaire (1987), Keyes’ Mental Health Continuum (2005), the Beck Scale for Suicide Ideation (1979), and the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (Gross & John, 2003). Data analysis was performed using descriptive and inferential statistical methods. In the descriptive section, charts, frequency tables, means, and standard deviations were utilized. In the inferential section, path analysis was conducted to test the research hypotheses using SPSS-26 and SmartPLS-3 software.
The results indicated a direct and significant relationship between the experience of childhood trauma, avoidant and secure attachment styles, and suicidal ideation. However, no direct and significant relationship was found between ambivalent/anxious attachment style or mental health and suicidal ideation. Furthermore, there was no significant indirect relationship between childhood trauma, attachment styles, or mental health and suicidal thoughts mediated by emotion regulation. Consequently, the mediating role of emotion regulation in the relationship between childhood trauma, attachment styles, mental health, and suicidal thoughts was not confirmed.
The lack of confirmation for the mediating role of emotion regulation in this study does not imply the insignificance of this construct; rather, it highlights the complexity and multidimensionality of the relationship between childhood trauma, attachment styles, mental health, and suicidal thoughts. This inconsistency in results can be attributed to methodological limitations, the existence of alternative mediating mechanisms, and the potential role of emotion regulation as a moderator variable.
