Acute suicidal affective disturbance inventory lifetime (ASADI-L)

A syndrome called Acute Suicidal Affective Disturbance (ASAD) has recently been proposed as a suicide specific diagnosis (1). The syndrome is characterized by a drastic increase in suicidal intent, social and self-alienation, as well as overarousal. A 28-item self-report measure, the Acute Suicidal Affective Disturbance Inventory Lifetime (ASADI-L), has been developed to assess the lifetime occurrence of ASAD symptoms. This study aims to validate a German version of the ASADI-L and to replicate the unidimensional factor structure of the original version. The psychometric properties of the German version of the ASADI-L were examined in a non-clinical online sample of n\(_1\) = 300 participants, n\(_2\) = 837 outpatients from a mental health research and treatment center and n\(-3\) = 148 outpatients from a treatment study on individuals diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder. A substantial proportion of all participants, including 23 % in \(\it Sample\) 1, 13.26 % in \(\it Sample\) 2, and 86.49 % in \(\it Sample\) 3, reported having ever experienced a drastic increase in suicide intent during their lifetime. In addition, 20 % reported every single ASAD item on the ASAD-IL. Confirmatory factor analysis showed an adequate model fit for the unidimensional model, with good internal consistency. Convergent validity was supported by significant correlations with measures of suicide-related constructs as well as symptoms of self-hatred and feelings of disgust as assessed in the Borderline Symptom List-23 (BSL-23). Future research should focus on ASAD in longitudinal studies to deepen the understanding of the syndrome and to examine the predictive power of this suicide-specific diagnosis.