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Anger can play an important role in adolescent suicidal behavior However, there is disagreement over the relative importance of internalized versus externalized anger The present study evaluated mode of anger expression in 104 adolescent suicide attempters and 323 high school students. The suicide attempters also completed measures of depression and hopelessness. Results indicated that suicidal adolescents displayed an increased likelihood of experiencing anger, reported significantly higher levels of both internalized and externalized anger, and displayed reduced tendencies for impulse control. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses found that the general inclination to experience anger was most closely related to externalized anger and poor impulse control. Among the adolescent suicide attempters, depression and hopelessness were related to internalized but not externalized anger Thus, it may be useful to assess the mode of anger expression when evaluating adolescents for suicide risk.

Humor may be an important coping skillfor dealing with emotional difficulties during adolescence. The relations between humor and symptoms of depression in high school students and in depressed adolescent psychiatric inpatients were examined in the present study. Assessment of humor included measures of humor appreciation, humor creativity, and humor coping. Professional comedians rated humor creativity. Depression was assessed with self-report measures of depressed mood, self-esteem, and hopelessness. Results indicated that humor can be measured reliably and that humor and depression are related. Specifically, using humor to cope with emotional difficulties was related to depression more than was the ability to appreciate or create humorous material. Although the adolescent inpatients reported more emotional distress than did the high school participants, the two groups did not differ on the humor measures. Further research examining the role of humor in coping with depression among adolescents is indicated.