IS PATH WARM?

IS PATH WARM? is an acronym utilized as a mnemonic device. It was created by the American Association of Suicidology to help counselors and the general public "remember the warning signs of suicide."

Reviews from the psychiatric literature regarding the "IS PATH WARM" mnemonic have been mixed. Several studies have confirmed that some of the acronym's warning signs are associated with suicidal ideation. A study compared 215 postings on an online "suicide forum" with 94 postings on a "self-injury forum." They found that posters in the 'suicide forum' were more likely than those in the 'self-injury forum' to express suicidal ideation, purposelessness, feeling trapped, and social withdrawal. (However, they were less likely than those in the self-injury forum to express recklessness.) The study concluded that individuals who exhibit "IS PATH WARM" warning signs were more likely to have suicidal ideation.

However, the psychiatric literature has been critical of the "IS PATH WARM" mnemonic's value in predicting suicidal behavior. A white paper prepared for the United States Fire Service's Suicide and Depression Summit stated that the acronym's "utility has been hampered by both limited sensitivity and weak specificity." A 2011 study was also critical of "IS PATH WARM"'s validity, finding that none of the ten warning signs were able to predict completed suicides.

According to a review of school-based suicide prevention, an additional concern is that the IS PATH WARM warning signs were based on risk factors for suicide that appear across the lifespan. Having not been evaluated independently for youth, the author writes, the acronym's value in predicting suicidal behavior in children is uncertain.

In creating the "IS PATH WARM" mnemonic, one of the American Association of Suicidology's stated goals was to aid the general public in learning and recalling the warning signs of suicide. The Society's "IS PATH WARM" webpage explains: "These warning signs were compiled by a task force of expert clinical-researchers and 'translated' for the general public."

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Wikipedia