Open Access

ARTICLE

Negotiable Fate Belief and Suicidal Ideation among Left-Behind Children: The Mediating Role of Coping Self-Efficacy and Gender Differences

Xiao Hu^1,#, Biao Li^2,#, Jun Qin^2,*

1 Department of Education, Shiyuan College of Nanning Normal University, Nanning, 530226, China
2 School of Education, Guangxi Science & Technology Normal University, Laibin, 546199, China

* Corresponding Author: Jun Qin. Email:
# These authors contributed equally to this work

International Journal of Mental Health Promotion 2025, 27(8), 1203-1220. https://doi.org/10.32604/ijmhp.2025.066297

Received 04 April 2025; Accepted 22 July 2025; Issue published 29 August 2025

Abstract

Objectives: Suicidal ideation is a strong predictor of suicide deaths, which refers to the consideration or desire to give up one’s own life. Left-behind children in rural China are more vulnerable to psychological problems and suicidal ideation compared to their non-left-behind peers. The aim of the current study was to examine two potential protective factors, negotiable fate belief and coping self-efficacy, and to test the mediating role of coping self-efficacy in the relationship between negotiable fate belief and suicidal ideation. We also analyzed gender differences in this mediation model. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted in rural areas of China. A sample of 526 left-behind children (285 males, 54.18%; 241 females, 45.82%; Mean_age = 13.29 years, SD = 0.97 years) was recruited to complete the Negotiable Fate Belief Scale, Coping Self-Efficacy Scale, and the Positive and Negative Suicide Ideation Inventory-Negative Scale. We used structural equation modeling to test the mediation model and multigroup analysis to test the moderation effect of gender. Results: Negotiable fate belief is negatively correlated with suicidal ideation (r = −0.13, p < 0.01). Moreover, coping self-efficacy mediates the relationship between negotiable fate belief and suicidal ideation (β = −0.06, 95% confidence interval (CI) [−0.12, −0.02]), accounting for 35.29% of the total effect. Finally, the mediating effect of coping self-efficacy was found to be significant only for female left-behind children (male: 95% CI [−0.09, 0.07]; female: 95% CI [−0.16, −0.01]). For female left-behind children, the mediating effect was complete, with a coefficient of −0.06, accounting for 85.71% of the total effect. Conclusions: The relationship between negotiable fate belief and suicidal ideation among rural left-behind children is mediated by coping self-efficacy, and this mediation effect was moderated by gender. This study provides a theoretical explanation for how cultivating the belief in negotiable fate and coping self-efficacy is effective for reducing suicidal ideation of rural left-behind children.

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