Suicide Risk Assessment: Practice Test 1 (Units 1-7) -
Questions with Correct Answers
100 questions
1. Since 2022, the national three-digit number for the US Suicide and Crisis Lifeline is:
A. 911 only
B. 311
C. 211 only
D. 988
Correct Answer: D. 988
Rationale: Calling, texting or chatting 988 connects people to trained crisis counselors 24/7, and options
exist for veterans and Spanish speakers. 911 is used for emergencies involving imminent danger. 211
and 311 connect to community or city services.
2. Improvement in mood in a severely depressed patient who was previously suicidal should be
interpreted carefully because:
A. Improvement always means risk is gone
B. Depression never improves
C. Increased energy may come before mood fully lifts, or calm may follow a decision to act
D. Mood has no relationship to suicide risk
Correct Answer: C. Increased energy may come before mood fully lifts, or calm may follow a
decision to act
Rationale: When energy returns before hopelessness resolves, a person may become more able to act;
sudden calm can also reflect a decision. Reassessment, not reduced vigilance, is needed during apparent
improvement and early treatment. This does not mean improvement is bad, only that it requires
monitoring.
,3. Suicide contagion refers to:
A. Increased suicidal behavior following exposure to suicide, especially through media coverage or in
close-knit groups
B. An infectious disease
C. Genetic inheritance of suicide
D. A medication side effect
Correct Answer: A. Increased suicidal behavior following exposure to suicide, especially
through media coverage or in close-knit groups
Rationale: Exposure, particularly sensational media reporting or a peer's death, can increase risk for
vulnerable people, and clusters can occur among adolescents. Safe messaging guidelines and
postvention reduce this effect. It is a social, not infectious or genetic, phenomenon.
4. Suicide is a leading cause of death among young people mainly because:
A. Young people have the highest suicide rates of any age
B. Young people never seek help
C. Other causes of death are relatively uncommon in this age group
D. It is the only cause of death in youth
Correct Answer: C. Other causes of death are relatively uncommon in this age group
Rationale: Young people rarely die of chronic disease, so suicide ranks highly among causes of death
even though older adults have higher rates per population. This distinction matters for interpreting
statistics. Young people do seek help, especially when barriers are reduced.
5. Which phrasing is preferred when describing a death by suicide?
A. Committed suicide
B. Successful suicide
C. Died by suicide
D. Failed attempt
Correct Answer: C. Died by suicide
Rationale: Committed implies a crime or sin and adds stigma, and terms like successful or failed frame
death as an achievement. Person-centered language such as died by suicide or suicide attempt reduces
stigma and encourages help-seeking. Language shapes how families and patients feel about seeking
support.
,6. Shneidman's concept of psychache describes:
A. Intense psychological pain that a person perceives as unbearable
B. Physical pain only
C. A type of headache
D. A personality disorder
Correct Answer: A. Intense psychological pain that a person perceives as unbearable
Rationale: Shneidman described suicide as an attempt to escape unbearable emotional pain, such as
shame, guilt, despair and loneliness. Asking about the level of psychological pain helps assess risk. It is
not physical pain or a specific diagnosis.
7. A suicide attempt is defined as:
A. Any self-harm regardless of intent
B. Thinking about suicide without acting
C. A self-injurious act with at least some intent to die, whether or not injury results
D. An accidental overdose
Correct Answer: C. A self-injurious act with at least some intent to die, whether or not injury
results
Rationale: The key element is intent to die, even if ambivalent, and an attempt can occur without physical
injury. Self-harm without intent to die is nonsuicidal self-injury, and accidental poisonings lack suicidal
intent. Accurate classification guides risk assessment and documentation.
8. A suicide death affects others because each death:
A. Affects only the immediate family
B. Has no effect on communities
C. Leaves many people bereaved and exposed, some of whom are at increased risk themselves
D. Reduces community risk
Correct Answer: C. Leaves many people bereaved and exposed, some of whom are at
increased risk themselves
Rationale: Research suggests that each suicide affects many people, and those closely affected, called
suicide loss survivors, have higher rates of complicated grief and suicidal ideation. Postvention support for
them is a form of prevention. The impact extends beyond the immediate family.
, 9. Which population has seen concerning increases in suicide rates and suicidal behavior in
recent years?
A. Only adults over 90
B. No group has changed
C. Only people with high income
D. Youth and young adults, particularly adolescent girls in emergency visits for self-harm
Correct Answer: D. Youth and young adults, particularly adolescent girls in emergency visits
for self-harm
Rationale: Data have shown increases in emergency visits for self-harm among adolescent girls and
rising suicide rates among young people of several groups. Monitoring trends helps target prevention.
Rates have changed across multiple groups, not only very old adults.
10. The difference between risk factors and warning signs is that warning signs:
A. Are long-standing characteristics
B. Indicate imminent or near-term risk and call for immediate action
C. Are always genetic
D. Are less important than risk factors
Correct Answer: B. Indicate imminent or near-term risk and call for immediate action
Rationale: Risk factors such as prior attempts or chronic illness increase long-term likelihood, while
warning signs such as talking about wanting to die, seeking means or extreme agitation suggest acute
danger. Both matter, but warning signs require urgent response.
11. Global estimates from the World Health Organization indicate that suicide:
A. Is rare worldwide
B. Occurs only in high-income countries
C. Has been eliminated in most countries
D. Causes more than 700,000 deaths worldwide each year, mostly in low- and middle-income
countries
Correct Answer: D. Causes more than 700,000 deaths worldwide each year, mostly in low-
and middle-income countries
Rationale: WHO estimates that over 700,000 people die by suicide each year, and most deaths occur in
low- and middle-income countries where access to care and lethal means differ. Suicide is a global public
health priority. It has not been eliminated anywhere.
Questions with Correct Answers
100 questions
1. Since 2022, the national three-digit number for the US Suicide and Crisis Lifeline is:
A. 911 only
B. 311
C. 211 only
D. 988
Correct Answer: D. 988
Rationale: Calling, texting or chatting 988 connects people to trained crisis counselors 24/7, and options
exist for veterans and Spanish speakers. 911 is used for emergencies involving imminent danger. 211
and 311 connect to community or city services.
2. Improvement in mood in a severely depressed patient who was previously suicidal should be
interpreted carefully because:
A. Improvement always means risk is gone
B. Depression never improves
C. Increased energy may come before mood fully lifts, or calm may follow a decision to act
D. Mood has no relationship to suicide risk
Correct Answer: C. Increased energy may come before mood fully lifts, or calm may follow a
decision to act
Rationale: When energy returns before hopelessness resolves, a person may become more able to act;
sudden calm can also reflect a decision. Reassessment, not reduced vigilance, is needed during apparent
improvement and early treatment. This does not mean improvement is bad, only that it requires
monitoring.
,3. Suicide contagion refers to:
A. Increased suicidal behavior following exposure to suicide, especially through media coverage or in
close-knit groups
B. An infectious disease
C. Genetic inheritance of suicide
D. A medication side effect
Correct Answer: A. Increased suicidal behavior following exposure to suicide, especially
through media coverage or in close-knit groups
Rationale: Exposure, particularly sensational media reporting or a peer's death, can increase risk for
vulnerable people, and clusters can occur among adolescents. Safe messaging guidelines and
postvention reduce this effect. It is a social, not infectious or genetic, phenomenon.
4. Suicide is a leading cause of death among young people mainly because:
A. Young people have the highest suicide rates of any age
B. Young people never seek help
C. Other causes of death are relatively uncommon in this age group
D. It is the only cause of death in youth
Correct Answer: C. Other causes of death are relatively uncommon in this age group
Rationale: Young people rarely die of chronic disease, so suicide ranks highly among causes of death
even though older adults have higher rates per population. This distinction matters for interpreting
statistics. Young people do seek help, especially when barriers are reduced.
5. Which phrasing is preferred when describing a death by suicide?
A. Committed suicide
B. Successful suicide
C. Died by suicide
D. Failed attempt
Correct Answer: C. Died by suicide
Rationale: Committed implies a crime or sin and adds stigma, and terms like successful or failed frame
death as an achievement. Person-centered language such as died by suicide or suicide attempt reduces
stigma and encourages help-seeking. Language shapes how families and patients feel about seeking
support.
,6. Shneidman's concept of psychache describes:
A. Intense psychological pain that a person perceives as unbearable
B. Physical pain only
C. A type of headache
D. A personality disorder
Correct Answer: A. Intense psychological pain that a person perceives as unbearable
Rationale: Shneidman described suicide as an attempt to escape unbearable emotional pain, such as
shame, guilt, despair and loneliness. Asking about the level of psychological pain helps assess risk. It is
not physical pain or a specific diagnosis.
7. A suicide attempt is defined as:
A. Any self-harm regardless of intent
B. Thinking about suicide without acting
C. A self-injurious act with at least some intent to die, whether or not injury results
D. An accidental overdose
Correct Answer: C. A self-injurious act with at least some intent to die, whether or not injury
results
Rationale: The key element is intent to die, even if ambivalent, and an attempt can occur without physical
injury. Self-harm without intent to die is nonsuicidal self-injury, and accidental poisonings lack suicidal
intent. Accurate classification guides risk assessment and documentation.
8. A suicide death affects others because each death:
A. Affects only the immediate family
B. Has no effect on communities
C. Leaves many people bereaved and exposed, some of whom are at increased risk themselves
D. Reduces community risk
Correct Answer: C. Leaves many people bereaved and exposed, some of whom are at
increased risk themselves
Rationale: Research suggests that each suicide affects many people, and those closely affected, called
suicide loss survivors, have higher rates of complicated grief and suicidal ideation. Postvention support for
them is a form of prevention. The impact extends beyond the immediate family.
, 9. Which population has seen concerning increases in suicide rates and suicidal behavior in
recent years?
A. Only adults over 90
B. No group has changed
C. Only people with high income
D. Youth and young adults, particularly adolescent girls in emergency visits for self-harm
Correct Answer: D. Youth and young adults, particularly adolescent girls in emergency visits
for self-harm
Rationale: Data have shown increases in emergency visits for self-harm among adolescent girls and
rising suicide rates among young people of several groups. Monitoring trends helps target prevention.
Rates have changed across multiple groups, not only very old adults.
10. The difference between risk factors and warning signs is that warning signs:
A. Are long-standing characteristics
B. Indicate imminent or near-term risk and call for immediate action
C. Are always genetic
D. Are less important than risk factors
Correct Answer: B. Indicate imminent or near-term risk and call for immediate action
Rationale: Risk factors such as prior attempts or chronic illness increase long-term likelihood, while
warning signs such as talking about wanting to die, seeking means or extreme agitation suggest acute
danger. Both matter, but warning signs require urgent response.
11. Global estimates from the World Health Organization indicate that suicide:
A. Is rare worldwide
B. Occurs only in high-income countries
C. Has been eliminated in most countries
D. Causes more than 700,000 deaths worldwide each year, mostly in low- and middle-income
countries
Correct Answer: D. Causes more than 700,000 deaths worldwide each year, mostly in low-
and middle-income countries
Rationale: WHO estimates that over 700,000 people die by suicide each year, and most deaths occur in
low- and middle-income countries where access to care and lethal means differ. Suicide is a global public
health priority. It has not been eliminated anywhere.
