The current analyses showed that child depressive symptoms and conduct disorder symptoms, an externalizing variable, were associated with suicide attempt (SA) during childhood and again when assessed approximately five years later, during adolescence, consistent with the theoretical ideas presented by Brent and Mann (2006). Depressive symptoms, conduct disorder symptoms, and suicidality assessed in childhood also predicted these symptoms later, during adolescence, illustrating continuity of psychopathology during development. We also found evidence of “transmission” of vulnerability from parents to offspring as predicted by Brent and Mann. In particular, parental antisocial personality disorder predicted conduct disorder symptoms in offspring both during childhood (T1) and adolescence (T2) (parent-child model, father-child model) and maternal alcohol use disorder predicted conduct disorder symptoms during childhood (mother-child model). However, we did not find evidence to support transmission of depression from parents to offspring either during childhood (T1) or adolescence (T2). Interestingly, none of the father, mother, or parent variables showed a statistically significant association with SA during adolescence (see comparisons in Table 1). Moreover, father, mother, and parent SA were not associated with child suicidality at T1
