Welcome to the Affect, Suicide, Self-Injury, and Social Triggers (ASSIST) Lab website!
Broadly, the ASSIST lab is interested in understanding and improving risk prediction for self-injurious thoughts and behaviors (SITB; i.e., nonsuicidal self-injury, suicidal ideation, suicide attempts), with a particular focus on how these experiences present in daily life and how interpersonal contexts can serve as both risk and protective factors. We consider overarching questions, such as (a) Can we improve the assessment and identification of SITBs through the utilization of novel assessment methodologies (i.e., text data, smartphone screenshots)? (b) How do interpersonal processes influence SITB risk? Is this context or risk-profile dependent?; (c) How can we use these findings to inform SITB intervention and prevention efforts? Our goal in the ASSIST Lab is to advance our understanding of the multiple pathways that can lead to SITBs, and, consequently, identify factors important for prevention.
The ASSIST Lab is part of the Notre Dame Suicide Prevention Initiative - Research, Intervention, and Training (SPIRIT), and Dr. Ammerman serves as the Co-Director of SPIRIT. See the SPIRIT Website for more information!