Will the real social desirability please stand up? Hopelessness, depression, social desirability, and the prediction of suicidal behavior.

Articles by the 2nd author and S. Nielsen (see PA, Vols 67:1443 and 69:12939) and J. Nevid (see record 1983-11675-001) have examined and debated the clinical significance of the negative relationship between the Hopelessness Scale and the social desirability (SD) response style. K. Petrie and K. Chamberlain (see record 1983-32939-001) found that the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale had no influence on the prediction of suicidal behavior. The present authors argue that this study did not address the question of SD response set in self-reported hopelessness, as the Marlowe-Crowne scale is factorially distinct from existing SD scales. The clinical utility of including SD assessment in the risk assessment and prediction of suicidal behavior was analyzed using both a general population sample (n?=?197) of Ss in a previous study by the 2nd author and Nielsen (1981) and a psychiatric sample (n?=?96) who participated in a study by the 2nd author et al (1983). Results indicate that prediction accuracy was enhanced by including SD assessment, particularly among psychiatric patients and when historical reports of suicidal behavior were involved. Nevertheless, using only hopelessness, depression, and SD assessments in suicide risk prediction still produced a dangerously high level of false negative cases in both general population and psychiatric samples. (21 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)