Explaining The Structural Model of The Relationship Between Defense Mechanisms and Mental Pain with Suicidal Thoughts with the Mediation of Depression in Sailor Men

Abstract</span></span></span></span></span></span>
Background &

</span> "Suicide" is a major public health problem and one of the main causes of death worldwide. Suicide is generally defined as an act of self-destruction with some degree of intent to end life. "Suicidal behavior" refers to death by suicide. Still, it also includes different types of suicidal actions, which range from lethal actions to die to less lethal actions that may occur in the context of a psychosocial crisis. It is varied and sometimes includes a part of the request for help. "Suicidal thoughts" is a broad term used to define thoughts and wishes of death and preoccupation with death. Suicidal thoughts are important because most suicidal actions happen after them. Suicidal thoughts are evaluated as the best predictor of suicidal actions. Identifying risk factors and cognitive processes that lead to suicidal thoughts can be effective in screening, prevention, evaluation, and treatment of suicide. Accurately identifying people who are at risk of committing suicide in the future is a big challenge in psychiatry and especially in patients with depression. Factors related to increasing the risk of suicidal thoughts and behaviors are numerous and diverse and include psychological and family characteristics and socio-economic and demographic dynamics. Tendency to suicidal thoughts and behaviors is the most disturbing symptom of depression, which is potentially the most deadly. Mental pain and defense mechanisms are strong predictors of suicide attempts in depressed people. The present study aimed to explain the structural model of the relationship between defense mechanisms and mental pain with suicidal thoughts with the mediation of depression in Iranian Seafaring men.</span></span></span>

</span> The research method was a descriptive-analytical type. The statistical population of this research included all seafaring men working in a tanker company in 2021 among them, 378 people entered the research voluntarily. The criteria for entering the present study include employment in the tanker company, work experience for at least 1 year, age 25 to 60 years, male gender, absence of physical disabilities and suffering from chronic diseases, not taking medication, and the lack of hospitalization during the last year due to the physical and mental condition, the lack of receiving psychotherapy simultaneously and during the last year. The criterion for leaving the research was the distorted and incomplete questionnaire. To collect data Beck Scale for Suicide Ideation (1979), Beck Depression Questionnaire (1961), Defense Style Questionnaire-40 by Andrews et al. (1993) and Mental Pain Scale by Orbach et al. (2003) were used. Structural equation model and SPSS-24 and AMOS-24 software and a significance level of 0.05 were used for data analysis.</span></span></span>

</span> In the present study, the results showed that the hypothesized model had fitness with the collected data (χ2</sup>/df=2.16, CFI=.988, GFI=.990, AGFI=.893, and RMSEA=.092). The results of this study showed that the direct path coefficient between immature mechanisms (p=0.016, β=0.160) and neurotic mechanisms (p=0.010, β=0.156) and mental pain (p=0.010, β=0.627) with depression was positive and significant. The results also showed the indirect path coefficient between immature mechanisms (p=0.011, β=0.218), neurotic mechanisms (p=0.017, β=0.054), and mental pain (p=0.021, β=0.055) with suicidal thoughts with the mediation of depression were positive and significant.</span></span></span>

</span> The results of the present study showed that there is a relationship between immature and neurotic defense mechanisms and mental pain with suicidal thoughts mediated by depression in in sailor men. In the explanation of the present findings, it can be said that defenses are unconscious psychological mechanisms that are directed towards both pressures caused by internal impulses and external pressures, especially pressures that threaten a person's self-esteem and self-concept, and maybe their integration is guided by the conscious awareness of the individual's personality structure. Defense mechanisms arise in a specific developmental sequence and are a function of healthy personality development. More mature defense mechanisms require a greater ability to adapt to reality so that they can effectively eliminate threatening emotions without distorting reality. Improper and excessive use of them can prevent healthy coping responses. Psychological factors such as the belief that a person cannot effectively solve their problems lead to increased helplessness and despair, the use of immature defenses, and depression. Although some self-injurious behaviors may not be done with the motive of dying, the common motive in these behaviors is to escape from unbearable conditions and mental suffering.</span></span></span></span>