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Sinyor M, Ekstein D, Prabaharan N, Fiksenbaum L, Vandermeer C, Schaffer A, Pirkis J, Heisel MJ, Goldstein BI, Redelmeier DA, Taylor P, Niederkrotenthaler T. Changes in Media Reporting Quality and Suicides Following National Media Engagement on Responsible Reporting of Suicide in Canada: Changements de la Qualité des reportages dans les médias sur les suicides suite à l'engagement des médias nationaux à la déclaration responsable du suicide au Canada. Can J Psychiatry 2024; 69:358-368. [PMID: 38174363 PMCID: PMC11032096 DOI: 10.1177/07067437231223334] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/05/2024]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Responsible media reporting is an accepted strategy for preventing suicide. In 2015, suicide prevention experts launched a media engagement initiative aimed at improving suicide-related reporting in Canada; its impact on media reporting quality and suicide deaths is unknown. METHOD This pre-post observational study examined changes in reporting characteristics in a random sample of suicide-related articles from major publications in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) media market. Articles (n = 900) included 450 from the 6-year periods prior to and after the initiative began. We also examined changes in suicide counts in the GTA between these epochs. We used chi-square tests to analyse changes in reporting characteristics and time-series analyses to identify changes in suicide counts. Secondary outcomes focused on guidelines developed by media professionals in Canada and how they may have influenced media reporting quality as well as on the overarching narrative of media articles during the most recent years of available data. RESULTS Across-the-board improvement was observed in suicide-related reporting with substantial reductions in many elements of putatively harmful content and substantial increases in all aspects of putatively protective content. However, overarching article narratives remained potentially harmful with 55.2% of articles telling the story of someone's death and 20.8% presenting an other negative message. Only 3.6% of articles told a story of survival. After controlling for potential confounders, a nonsignificant numeric decrease in suicide counts was identified after initiative implementation (ω = -5.41, SE = 3.43, t = 1.58, p = 0.12). CONCLUSIONS We found evidence that a strategy to engage media in Canada changed the content of reporting, but there was only a nonsignificant trend towards fewer suicides. A more fundamental change in media narratives to focus on survival rather than death appears warranted.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mark Sinyor
- Department of Psychiatry, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | - Daniella Ekstein
- Department of Psychiatry, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, Canada
| | - Nivetha Prabaharan
- Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | | | - Caroline Vandermeer
- Viterbi School of Engineering, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, USA
| | - Ayal Schaffer
- Department of Psychiatry, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | - Jane Pirkis
- Centre for Mental Health, Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, Australia
| | - Marnin J. Heisel
- Department of Psychiatry, The University of Western Ontario, London, Canada
| | - Benjamin I. Goldstein
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
- Centre for Youth Bipolar Disorder, Center for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Canada
| | - Donald A. Redelmeier
- Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences, Toronto, Canada
- Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
- Division of General Internal Medicine, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, Canada
| | - Paul Taylor
- Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, Canada
| | - Thomas Niederkrotenthaler
- Unit Suicide Research and Mental Health Promotion, Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Centre for Public Health, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- Wiener Werkstaette for Suicide Research, Vienna, Austria
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Kirchner S, Till B, Laido Z, Niederkrotenthaler T. Suicide-Related Media Reporting With a Focus on Sexual and Gender Minority Identities. Crisis 2024. [PMID: 38597230 DOI: 10.1027/0227-5910/a000956] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/11/2024]
Abstract
Background: Little is known about the quality of media reports on suicide and prevention targeting persons with sexual or gender minority identities (LGBTQ+). Aims: To assess the quality of suicide-related media reporting of LGBTQ+ people and its consistency with media guidelines. Method: We conducted a content analysis of 5,652 media items in two US states (Washington and Oregon) published within 1 year. Results: There were only few differences in the reporting about suicide in LGBTQ+ as compared to non-LGBTQ+ reports. LGBTQ+ media items more often portrayed suicide as monocausal [Oregon: OR = 1.75, 95% CI (1.03-2.98), p = .038; Washington: OR = 3.00, 95% CI (1.81-4.97), p < .001] and linked them to adverse life experiences [OR = 2.16, 95% CI (1.38-3.38), p < .001; OR = 2.09, 95% CI (1.30-3.38), p = .002] than non-LGBTQ+ items. They also more often featured mental health experts [OR = 1.79, 95% CI (1.04-3.10), p = .034; OR = 2.12, 95% CI (1.23-3.67), p = .006] and contacts to support services [OR = 2.22, 95% CI (1.41-3.48), p < .001; OR = 2.70, 95% CI (1.64-4.45), p < .001]. Limitations: Aspects possibly influencing the portrayal of LGBTQ+ suicide and prevention beyond the characteristics listed were not investigated. Conclusion: Suicide-related media reporting related to LGBTQ+ issues features potentially beneficial aspects but tends to overlook multifactorial causes of suicide. Diverse factors contributing to LGBTQ+ suicide and prevention warrant greater attention.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefanie Kirchner
- Public Mental Health Research Unit, Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Center for Public Health, Medical University of Vienna, Austria
- Wiener Werkstaette for Suicide Research, Vienna, Austria
| | - Benedikt Till
- Public Mental Health Research Unit, Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Center for Public Health, Medical University of Vienna, Austria
- Wiener Werkstaette for Suicide Research, Vienna, Austria
| | - Zrinka Laido
- Public Mental Health Research Unit, Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Center for Public Health, Medical University of Vienna, Austria
- Wiener Werkstaette for Suicide Research, Vienna, Austria
| | - Thomas Niederkrotenthaler
- Public Mental Health Research Unit, Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Center for Public Health, Medical University of Vienna, Austria
- Wiener Werkstaette for Suicide Research, Vienna, Austria
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Lueck JA, Poe M. Werther or Papageno? Examining the effects of news reports of celebrity suicide versus non-celebrity peer suicide on intentions to seek help among vulnerable young adults. Suicide Life Threat Behav 2023; 53:1038-1054. [PMID: 37750193 DOI: 10.1111/sltb.13004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2021] [Revised: 09/01/2023] [Accepted: 09/01/2023] [Indexed: 09/27/2023]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION A large body of literature has examined the Werther effect following news reports of suicide, yet much less attention has been paid to the protective Papageno effect. This research explored the causal relationships between news reports of real celebrity suicides (e.g., pop-rock star Chester Bennington) and real non-celebrity "peer" suicides (e.g., college student Madison Holleran) and intentions to seek help. METHODS Two survey experiments confirmed successful experimental manipulation (N = 280) and tested behavioral theory, clinical indicators, and intentions to seek help (N = 641) in samples of college students (18-25). RESULTS Participants were motivated to seek help if they believed it could lead to positive outcomes, yet this was less likely among participants with depression. Exposure to news reports of non-celebrity suicides had a small positive effect on help-seeking intentions. Among participants with depression, news reports of celebrity suicides had a small positive effect on intentions. CONCLUSIONS This research could not establish Werther effects for either of the news reports. Exposure to news reports of non-celebrity suicides had a small positive effect on intentions overall, but young adults with higher levels of depression were slightly more motivated to seek help after viewing news reports of celebrity suicides.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer A Lueck
- Department of Communication, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, USA
| | - Madison Poe
- Department of International Development, University of Oxford, Oxford, England
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Till B, Arendt F, Kirchner S, Naderer B, Niederkrotenthaler T. The role of monocausal versus multicausal explanations of suicide in suicide reporting: A randomized controlled trial. Suicide Life Threat Behav 2023; 53:1063-1075. [PMID: 37823595 DOI: 10.1111/sltb.13007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2023] [Revised: 09/28/2023] [Accepted: 10/01/2023] [Indexed: 10/13/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Media guidelines for reporting on suicide recommend that journalists should avoid monocausal explanations of suicide, but it is unclear if media items with monocausal explanations elicit different effects as compared to multicausal portrayals. METHOD Using a web-based randomized controlled trial (n = 969), we tested five versions of a news article about the suicide of a teenage girl with varying portrayals of reasons for the suicide: (1) bullying as the sole (external) factor (i.e., monocausal), (2) several external social factors, (3) a combination of internal and external factors, (4) a combination of internal and external factors along with a focus on suicide prevention, or (5) no reason for the suicide (control group). We measured perceptions about the cause of suicide, attitudes toward suicide and suicide prevention, and identification with the suicidal protagonist with questionnaires. RESULTS Readers of articles that portrayed suicide as being caused by one specific reason or exclusively social factors tended to adopt these misconceptions. Identification with the suicidal protagonist did not vary between interventions groups, but was lower in the control group. CONCLUSION Highlighting the multifactorial etiology of suicide in news articles may help to avoid the misconception that suicide is a monocausal issue.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benedikt Till
- Unit Suicide Research & Mental Health Promotion, Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Center for Public Health, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- Wiener Werkstaette for Suicide Research, Vienna, Austria
| | - Florian Arendt
- Wiener Werkstaette for Suicide Research, Vienna, Austria
- Department of Communication, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Stefanie Kirchner
- Unit Suicide Research & Mental Health Promotion, Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Center for Public Health, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- Wiener Werkstaette for Suicide Research, Vienna, Austria
| | - Brigitte Naderer
- Unit Suicide Research & Mental Health Promotion, Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Center for Public Health, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- Wiener Werkstaette for Suicide Research, Vienna, Austria
| | - Thomas Niederkrotenthaler
- Unit Suicide Research & Mental Health Promotion, Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Center for Public Health, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- Wiener Werkstaette for Suicide Research, Vienna, Austria
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Menon V, Kar SK, Ransing R, Sharma G, Pattnaik JI, Varadharajan N, Kaliamoorthy C, Mukherjee S, Agrawal A, Padhy SK, Arafat SMY. Long-Term Changes in the Quality of Media Reporting of Suicide Following a Celebrity Suicide in India. Omega (Westport) 2023:302228231189849. [PMID: 37453041 DOI: 10.1177/00302228231189849] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/18/2023]
Abstract
Online portals of selected English and local language newspapers and television channels were searched to identify suicide news reports published one year after the celebrity suicide (ACS). These reports (n = 1952) were compared with the corresponding period of the previous year, immediately following the celebrity suicide (ICS) (n = 2486), and a three-month period before the celebrity suicide (BCS) (n = 1381) to assess longitudinal changes in quality of media reporting. There was a decline in reporting of several potentially harmful characteristics over time such as mentioning the deceased's age and gender (p < .001 for both), and location of suicide (p < .001). The quality of media reporting of suicide was significantly better at one year compared to the period immediately following celebrity suicide. This change was mainly driven by an improvement in the reporting quality of English news reports while local language reports continued to remain poorly adherent to reporting guidelines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vikas Menon
- Department of Psychiatry, Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research (JIPMER), Puducherry, India
| | | | - Ramdas Ransing
- Department of Psychiatry, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Guwahati, India
| | - Ginni Sharma
- King George's Medical University, Lucknow, India
| | | | - Natarajan Varadharajan
- Department of Psychiatry, Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research (JIPMER), Puducherry, India
| | - Charanya Kaliamoorthy
- Department of Psychiatry, Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research (JIPMER), Puducherry, India
| | | | | | - Susanta Kumar Padhy
- Department of Psychiatry, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Bhubaneswar, India
| | - S M Yasir Arafat
- Department of Psychiatry, Enam Medical College and Hospital, Dhaka, Bangladesh
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Scaioli G, Lo Moro G, Giacomini G, Galvagno PF, Bert F, Siliquini R. Prevention of the Werther effect: compliance of the Italian newspapers to the 'reporting on suicide' recommendations. Public Health 2023; 221:124-130. [PMID: 37441996 DOI: 10.1016/j.puhe.2023.06.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/23/2023] [Revised: 05/17/2023] [Accepted: 06/05/2023] [Indexed: 07/15/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Suicide media coverage could lead to imitation, the so-called 'Werther effect'. The World Health Organization (WHO) published specific recommendations for reporting suicide news. This study aimed to quantify the compliance of Italian newspapers with the WHO suicide reporting guidelines. STUDY DESIGN This was a quantitative content analysis study. METHODS All articles published by the three main Italian newspapers from June 2019 to May 2020 describing suicides or attempted suicides were included. The articles were analyzed using a checklist based on the WHO recommendations, which included 18 'negative' items (e.g. 'presence of the word 'suicide' in the title') and nine 'positive' items (e.g. 'the article reports the contacts of a suicide prevention hotline'). Each negative item was scored -1, and each positive item was scored +1. Multivariate linear regressions were performed to identify factors associated with lower adherence to WHO recommendations and higher social media engagement with the articles. RESULTS A total of 3483 articles were screened, and 110 articles were included in the final analysis. The suicidal was male in 73.6% of cases. The median checklist score was -6 (interquartile range 3). Five percent of the articles had at least one positive item. The word 'suicide' was found in 90% of the titles. Female suicides were associated with a higher checklist score (coefficient 0.81, P = 0.039). No correlation was found between the checklist score and the social media engagement of the articles. CONCLUSIONS Italian newspapers do not adhere completely to the WHO recommendations on reporting suicide, leading to a potential imitation effect. Public health professionals should make decision-makers and journalists aware of the importance of these recommendations.
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Affiliation(s)
- G Scaioli
- Department of Public Health Sciences, University of Turin, Turin, Italy; Local Health Authority ASL TO3, Turin, Italy
| | - G Lo Moro
- Department of Public Health Sciences, University of Turin, Turin, Italy
| | - G Giacomini
- Department of Public Health Sciences, University of Turin, Turin, Italy.
| | - P F Galvagno
- Department of Public Health Sciences, University of Turin, Turin, Italy
| | - F Bert
- Department of Public Health Sciences, University of Turin, Turin, Italy; Local Health Authority ASL TO3, Turin, Italy
| | - R Siliquini
- Department of Public Health Sciences, University of Turin, Turin, Italy; AOU City of Health and Science of Turin, Turin, Italy
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7
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Kim LH, Lee GM, Lee WR, Yoo KB. The Werther effect following the suicides of three korean celebrities (2017-2018): an ecological time-series study. BMC Public Health 2023; 23:1173. [PMID: 37337158 DOI: 10.1186/s12889-023-16080-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2022] [Accepted: 06/08/2023] [Indexed: 06/21/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The suicide rate in Korea was the highest among the member countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development(OECD) for 2013-2016 and 2018-2020. In korea, suicide was the leading cause of death among individuals aged 10-39, and the second leading cause of death for aged 40-59. Thus, this study aimed to examine the Werther effect of the suicides of three Korean idol singers (Jonghyun: December 18, 2017, Sulli: October 14, 2019, and Hara Gu: November 24, 2019). METHODS The study conducted Poisson regression and used the cause-of-death statistics microdata from 2016 to 2020 provided by Statistics Korea. The case periods ranged from the day of the suicide of each celebrity to 10 weeks after. The control periods were all weeks from 2016 to 2020, excluding the case periods. RESULTS The suicide rates in Korea significantly increased by 1.21, 1.30, and 1.28 times after the deaths of Jonghyun, Sulli, and Hara Gu, respectively. The Werther effect was more evident in women than men. Suicide rate among individuals aged 10-29 years was greater than those for other age groups. CONCLUSIONS This study confirmed that the rate of copycat suicides increased after three celebrity singers in Korea died by suicide. Nevertheless, the rate of suicide after the suicide of the three celebrity singers was lower than those in previous studies in Korea.
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Affiliation(s)
- Li-Hyun Kim
- Department of Healthcare Institution Support, National Health Insurance Service, Wonju, Republic of Korea
| | - Gyeong-Min Lee
- Department of premedical, College of Medicine, Dankook University, Cheonan, Republic of Korea
| | - Woo-Ri Lee
- Department of Resarch and Analysis, National Health Insurance Service Ilsan Hospital, Goyang, Republic of Korea
| | - Ki-Bong Yoo
- Division of Health Administration, College of Software and Digital Healthcare Convergence, Yonsei University, Wonju, Republic of Korea.
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Hawley LL, Niederkrotenthaler T, Zaheer R, Schaffer A, Redelmeier DA, Levitt AJ, Sareen J, Pirkis J, Sinyor M. Is the narrative the message? The relationship between suicide-related narratives in media reports and subsequent suicides. Aust N Z J Psychiatry 2023; 57:758-766. [PMID: 35999688 PMCID: PMC10126449 DOI: 10.1177/00048674221117072] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES When journalists report on the details of a suicide, the way that they contextualize the meaning of the event (i.e. the 'narrative') can have significant consequences for readers. The 'Werther' and 'Papageno' narrative effects refer to increases and decreases in suicides across populations following media reports on suicidal acts or mastery of crises, respectively. The goal of this study was to investigate the impact of these different narrative constructs on subsequent suicides. METHODS This study examined the change in suicide counts over time in Toronto, Canada. It used latent difference score analysis, examining suicide-related print media reports in the Toronto media market (2011-2014). Articles (N = 6367) were coded as having a potentially harmful narrative if they described suicide in a celebrity or described a suicide death in a non-celebrity and included the suicide method. Articles were coded as having potentially protective narratives if they included at least one element of protective content (e.g. alternatives to suicide) without including any information about suicidal behaviour (i.e. suicide attempts or death). RESULTS Latent difference score longitudinal multigroup analyses identified a dose-response relationship in which the trajectory of suicides following harmful 'Werther' narrative reports increased over time, while protective 'Papageno' narrative reports declined. The latent difference score model demonstrated significant goodness of fit and parameter estimates, with each group demonstrating different trajectories of change in reported suicides over time: (χ2[6], N = 6367) = 13.16; χ2/df = 2.19; Akaike information criterion = 97.16, comparative fit index = 0.96, root mean square error of approximation = 0.03. CONCLUSION Our findings support the notion that the 'narrative' matters when reporting on suicide. Specifically, 'Werther' narratives of suicides in celebrities and suicides in non-celebrities where the methods were described were associated with more subsequent suicides while 'Papageno' narratives of survival and crisis mastery without depictions of suicidal behaviours were associated with fewer subsequent suicides. These results may inform efforts to prevent imitation suicides.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lance L Hawley
- Frederick W. Thompson Anxiety Disorders
Centre, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, Sunnybrook Health
Sciences Centre, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Thomas Niederkrotenthaler
- Unit Suicide Research and Mental Health
Promotion, Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Center for Public Health, Medical
University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Rabia Zaheer
- Department of Psychiatry, Sunnybrook Health
Sciences Centre, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Ayal Schaffer
- Department of Psychiatry, Sunnybrook Health
Sciences Centre, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Donald A Redelmeier
- Department of Medicine, University of
Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Evaluative Clinical Sciences, Sunnybrook
Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Division of General Internal Medicine,
Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences,
Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Anthony J Levitt
- Department of Psychiatry, Sunnybrook Health
Sciences Centre, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Jitender Sareen
- Departments of Psychiatry, Psychology and
Community Health Sciences, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB, Canada
| | - Jane Pirkis
- Centre for Mental Health, Melbourne School of
Population and Global Health, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, Australia
| | - Mark Sinyor
- Department of Psychiatry, Sunnybrook Health
Sciences Centre, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
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Guinovart M, Cobo J, González-Rodríguez A, Parra-Uribe I, Palao D. Towards the Influence of Media on Suicidality: A Systematic Review of Netflix's 'Thirteen Reasons Why'. Int J Environ Res Public Health 2023; 20:5270. [PMID: 37047886 PMCID: PMC10094075 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph20075270] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2023] [Revised: 03/12/2023] [Accepted: 03/14/2023] [Indexed: 06/19/2023]
Abstract
Online streaming series 'Thirteen Reasons Why' (13RW), released in March 2017, was criticized for its sensationalist portrayal of the main character's suicide, leading some people to voice fears of a global contagion of self-harm behaviors. The current investigation provides a systematic review of original studies analyzing the role of 13RW as an influencing factor for suicide. Articles were identified through a systematic search of Medline, Web of Science, Scopus, PsycInfo, and a manual search of reference lists from inception until the 16 January 2023. Twenty-seven published articles were identified from an initial search of 496 studies. The positive effects of watching 13RW included a reduction in suicide stigma and a greater likelihood to discuss mental health concerns and seek for help. However, several studies reported negative outcomes, including significant increases in the rate of deaths by suicide in adolescents, the number of admissions for suicidal reasons, and the prevalence and severity of suicidal ideation and self-harm behaviors in vulnerable viewers. Still, due to methodological limitations, no causal relationship could be established. Preventive measures are required to alert of the risk and should be particularly addressed to susceptible subjects. Psychoeducational programs should be focused on this kind of phenomena in vulnerable populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martí Guinovart
- Department of Mental Health, Hospital Universitari Parc Taulí, 1 Parc Taulí, 08208 Sabadell, Spain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental (CIBERSAM), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, 3-5 Calle Monforte de Lemos, Pabellón 11, Planta 0, 28029 Madrid, Spain
- Department of Psychiatry and Forensic Medicine, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Plaça Cívica, 08193 Bellaterra, Spain
| | - Jesús Cobo
- Department of Mental Health, Hospital Universitari Parc Taulí, 1 Parc Taulí, 08208 Sabadell, Spain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental (CIBERSAM), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, 3-5 Calle Monforte de Lemos, Pabellón 11, Planta 0, 28029 Madrid, Spain
- Department of Psychiatry and Forensic Medicine, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Plaça Cívica, 08193 Bellaterra, Spain
| | - Alexandre González-Rodríguez
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental (CIBERSAM), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, 3-5 Calle Monforte de Lemos, Pabellón 11, Planta 0, 28029 Madrid, Spain
- Department of Mental Health, Hospital Universitari Mútua de Terrassa, 5 Plaça del Doctor Robert, 08221 Terrassa, Spain
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Barcelona, 585 Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes, 08007 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Isabel Parra-Uribe
- Department of Mental Health, Hospital Universitari Parc Taulí, 1 Parc Taulí, 08208 Sabadell, Spain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental (CIBERSAM), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, 3-5 Calle Monforte de Lemos, Pabellón 11, Planta 0, 28029 Madrid, Spain
- Department of Psychiatry and Forensic Medicine, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Plaça Cívica, 08193 Bellaterra, Spain
| | - Diego Palao
- Department of Mental Health, Hospital Universitari Parc Taulí, 1 Parc Taulí, 08208 Sabadell, Spain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental (CIBERSAM), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, 3-5 Calle Monforte de Lemos, Pabellón 11, Planta 0, 28029 Madrid, Spain
- Department of Psychiatry and Forensic Medicine, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Plaça Cívica, 08193 Bellaterra, Spain
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10
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Mestas M, Arendt F. Suicide of a Tenor Amidst the Stage Setting of the Werther Opera's Death Scene. Crisis 2023; 44:122-127. [PMID: 34915731 DOI: 10.1027/0227-5910/a000842] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
Background: Reporting on suicide can elicit an increase in suicides, a phenomenon termed the "Werther effect." The name can be traced back to an alleged spike in suicides after the publication of Goethe's novel The Sorrows of Young Werther in 1774, in which the protagonist Werther dies by suicide. Aims: Acknowledging the importance and primacy of systematic ecological and individual-level studies, we provide a historical single-case report of the suicide of a "late arrival of the Werther epidemic," as the death was headlined in a news report in 1927. Method: Archival research on tenor Paul Vidal's suicide was conducted. Results: Vidal reconstructed the scene of the final act of the opera Werther in his apartment and died by a gunshot, as did Werther. Limitations: Causal interpretations must be made with caution. Conclusion: Striking similarities between Werther's and Vidal's deaths support the idea of strong identification with the fictional narrative and suggest causal effects. Considering the repeated high level of immersiveness and the intense emotions of opera performances, it is likely that performing the role of Werther increases identification processes, contributing to detrimental effects. The lack of knowledge regarding the role of fictional suicide stories on artists' suicides is discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Manina Mestas
- Department of Communication, University of Vienna, Austria
| | - Florian Arendt
- Department of Communication, University of Vienna, Austria
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11
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Arendt F, Mestas M. Suicide among soldiers and social contagion effects: An interrupted time-series analysis. Soc Sci Med 2023; 320:115747. [PMID: 36746079 DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2023.115747] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2022] [Revised: 01/24/2023] [Accepted: 01/27/2023] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Suicide has become an increasingly concerning problem among soldiers in recent years. Previous research has hypothesized that media-related social contagion effects, termed "Werther effects," may contribute to military suicide numbers. Unfortunately, there is limited empirical knowledge on such social contagion effects in soldiers. We contribute to the literature by investigating this phenomenon in the context of a specific historical suicide case, allowing us to provide a longitudinal assessment: Crown Prince Rudolf, heir to the Imperial throne of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, who died by suicide in January 1889. His death was a well-known news story that shook the monarchy to its foundations. Notably, soldiers of the late nineteenth century were an especially vulnerable portion of the population, proven by the fact that the Austro-Hungarian military had one of the highest suicide rates at the time compared to other European countries. METHODS AND RESULTS An interrupted time-series analysis, relying on annual military suicide rates between 1873 and 1910, indicated a significant increase in the suicide rate the year of Rudolf's death, a pattern consistent with a social contagion effect. In fact, time series analysis estimated that there were about 30 excess suicides per 100,000 population within the year of Rudolf's death. Additionally, we identified a substantial change in the trend after Rudolf's death, pointing to a long-term decrease in military suicide rates. The latter was not observed in the general population but appeared to be unique to soldiers. DISCUSSION Although we are very careful when interpreting causal effects with our historical data, we discuss the latter finding by questioning whether a change in military culture, that is, the establishment of better conditions for soldiers in the aftermath of Rudolf's suicide, contributed to decreasing suicide numbers. Although tentative, these findings are also highly relevant for the study of military suicide today.
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Affiliation(s)
- Florian Arendt
- Department of Communication, University of Vienna, Austria.
| | - Manina Mestas
- Department of Communication, University of Vienna, Austria
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12
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Lee H, Rhee SJ, Kim MJ, Park CHK, Yang JH, Son K, Park JI, Ahn YM. Shifting attitudes toward suicide over time: A latent profile analysis using the Korea National Suicide Survey. Front Psychiatry 2023; 14:1124318. [PMID: 36937738 PMCID: PMC10014803 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1124318] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2022] [Accepted: 02/06/2023] [Indexed: 03/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction South Korea has a high suicide rate, and changes in sociodemographic factors can further increase the rate. This study aims to (1) classify participants using the Attitudes toward Suicide Scale (ATTS) through latent profile analysis (LPA), (2) identify and compare the associations between sociodemographic factors with the ATTS in two survey years (2013, 2018), and (3) determine the moderating effect of survey year. Methods Six sub-factors of the ATTS were used for LPA with a total of 2,973 participants. Sociodemographic characteristics were compared between groups, and multinomial logistic regression was conducted for each survey year. A moderation analysis was conducted with the survey year as moderator. Results LPA identified three groups of attitudes toward suicide: incomprehensible (10.3%), mixed (52.8%), and permissive (36.9%). The proportion of permissive attitudes increased from 2013 (32.3%) to 2018 (41.7%). Participants reporting suicidal behavior were more likely to be in the mixed and permissive groups than the incomprehensible group in both years. People reporting no religious beliefs were associated with the permissive group in the two survey years. The influence of education and income levels on groups differed by survey year. Discussion There were significant changes between 2013 and 2018 in attitudes toward suicide in the Korean population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hyunju Lee
- Department of Neuropsychiatry, Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Sang Jin Rhee
- Department of Neuropsychiatry, Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Min Ji Kim
- Department of Psychiatry, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | | | - Jeong Hun Yang
- Department of Neuropsychiatry, Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Kyunghoon Son
- Department of Neuropsychiatry, Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Jong-Ik Park
- Department of Psychiatry, Kangwon National University School of Medicine, Chuncheon, Republic of Korea
| | - Yong Min Ahn
- Department of Neuropsychiatry, Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul, Republic of Korea
- Department of Psychiatry, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea
- Institute of Human Behavioral Medicine, Seoul National University Medical Research Center, Seoul, Republic of Korea
- *Correspondence: Yong Min Ahn
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13
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Niederkrotenthaler T, Laido Z, Gould M, Lake AM, Sinyor M, Kirchner S, Braun M, Chowdhury S, Gonzalez F, Draper J, Murphy S, Till B. Associations of suicide-related media reporting characteristics with help-seeking and suicide in Oregon and Washington. Aust N Z J Psychiatry 2022:48674221146474. [PMID: 36579678 DOI: 10.1177/00048674221146474] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Specific content characteristics of suicide media reporting might differentially impact suicides in the population, but studies have not considered the overarching theme of the respective media stories and other relevant outcomes besides suicide, such as help-seeking behaviours. METHODS We obtained 5652 media reports related to suicide from 6 print, 44 broadcast and 251 online sources in Oregon and Washington states, published between April 2019 and March 2020. We conducted a content analysis of stories regarding their overarching focus and specific content characteristics based on media recommendations for suicide reporting. We applied logistic regression analyses to assess how focus and content characteristics were associated with subsequent calls to the US National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (Lifeline) and suicides in these two states in the week after publication compared to a control time period. RESULTS Compared to a focus on suicide death, a focus on suicidal ideation, suicide prevention, healing stories, community suicide crises/suicide clusters and homicide suicide was associated with more calls. As compared to a focus on suicide death, stories on suicide prevention and stories on community suicide crises/suicide clusters were also associated with no increase in suicides. Regarding specific content characteristics, there were associations that were largely consistent with previous work in the area, for example, an association of celebrity suicide reporting with increases in suicide. CONCLUSION The overall focus of a media story may influence help-seeking and suicides, and several story characteristics appear to be related to both outcomes. More research is needed to investigate possible causal effects and pathways.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Niederkrotenthaler
- Unit Suicide Research & Mental Health Promotion, Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Center for Public Health, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.,Wiener Werkstaette for Suicide Research, Vienna, Austria
| | - Zrinka Laido
- Unit Suicide Research & Mental Health Promotion, Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Center for Public Health, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.,Wiener Werkstaette for Suicide Research, Vienna, Austria
| | - Madelyn Gould
- Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, College of Physicians & Surgeons, Columbia University, New York, USA.,Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, New York, USA.,New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, NY, USA
| | - Alison M Lake
- New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, NY, USA
| | - Mark Sinyor
- Department of Psychiatry, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, ON, Canada.,Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Stefanie Kirchner
- Unit Suicide Research & Mental Health Promotion, Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Center for Public Health, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.,Wiener Werkstaette for Suicide Research, Vienna, Austria
| | - Marlies Braun
- Unit Suicide Research & Mental Health Promotion, Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Center for Public Health, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.,Wiener Werkstaette for Suicide Research, Vienna, Austria
| | | | - Frances Gonzalez
- Vibrant Emotional Health, National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, New York, NY, USA
| | - John Draper
- Vibrant Emotional Health, National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, New York, NY, USA
| | - Sean Murphy
- Vibrant Emotional Health, National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, New York, NY, USA
| | - Benedikt Till
- Unit Suicide Research & Mental Health Promotion, Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Center for Public Health, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.,Wiener Werkstaette for Suicide Research, Vienna, Austria
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14
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Sinyor M, Mallia E, de Oliveira C, Schaffer A, Niederkrotenthaler T, Zaheer J, Mitchell R, Rudoler D, Kurdyak P. Emergency department visits for self-harm in adolescents after
release of the Netflix series ‘13 Reasons Why’. Aust N Z J Psychiatry 2022; 56:1434-1442. [PMID: 34963338 PMCID: PMC9597162 DOI: 10.1177/00048674211065999] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To determine whether the release of the first season of the Netflix series '13 Reasons Why' was associated with changes in emergency department presentations for self-harm. METHODS Healthcare utilization databases were used to identify emergency department and outpatient presentations according to age and sex for residents of Ontario, Canada. Data from 2007 to 2018 were used in autoregressive integrated moving average models for time series forecasting with a pre-specified hypothesis that rates of emergency department presentations for self-harm would increase in the 3-month period following the release of 13 Reasons Why (1 April 2017 to 30 June 2017). Chi-square and t tests were used to identify demographic and health service use differences between those presenting to emergency department with self-harm during this epoch compared to a control period (1 April 2016 to 30 June 2016). RESULTS There was a significant estimated excess of 75 self-harm-related emergency department visits (+6.4%) in the 3 months after 13 Reasons Why above what was predicted by the autoregressive integrated moving average model (standard error = 32.4; p = 0.02); adolescents aged 10-19 years had 60 excess visits (standard error = 30.7; p = 0.048), whereas adults demonstrated no significant change. Sex-stratified analyses demonstrated that these findings were largely driven by significant increases in females. There were no differences in demographic or health service use characteristics between those who presented to emergency department with self-harm in April to June 2017 vs April to June 2016. CONCLUSIONS This study demonstrated a significant increase in self-harm emergency department visits associated with the release of 13 Reasons Why. It adds to previously published mortality, survey and helpline data collectively demonstrating negative mental health outcomes associated with 13 Reasons Why.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mark Sinyor
- Department of Psychiatry, Sunnybrook
Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, ON, Canada,Department of Psychiatry, University of
Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada,Mark Sinyor, Department of Psychiatry,
Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, 2075 Bayview Avenue, FG52, Toronto, ON M4N
3M5, Canada.
| | - Emilie Mallia
- Institute for Mental Health Policy
Research, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Claire de Oliveira
- Institute for Mental Health Policy
Research, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), Toronto, ON, Canada,Centre for Health Economics and Hull
York Medical School, University of York, York, UK,ICES, Toronto, ON, Canada,Institute of Health Policy, Management
and Evaluation, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Ayal Schaffer
- Department of Psychiatry, Sunnybrook
Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, ON, Canada,Department of Psychiatry, University of
Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Thomas Niederkrotenthaler
- Unit Suicide Research & Mental
Health Promotion, Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Center for Public
Health, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Juveria Zaheer
- Department of Psychiatry, University of
Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada,General and Health Systems Psychiatry,
Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Rachel Mitchell
- Department of Psychiatry, Sunnybrook
Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, ON, Canada,Department of Psychiatry, University of
Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - David Rudoler
- ICES, Toronto, ON, Canada,Institute of Health Policy, Management
and Evaluation, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada,Faculty of Health Sciences, Ontario
Tech University, Oshawa, ON, Canada
| | - Paul Kurdyak
- Department of Psychiatry, University of
Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada,Institute for Mental Health Policy
Research, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), Toronto, ON, Canada,ICES, Toronto, ON, Canada,Institute of Health Policy, Management
and Evaluation, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
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15
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Myhre MØ, Walby FA. The Impact of a Widely Publicized Celebrity Suicide on Suicide-Related Internet Search Activity. Arch Suicide Res 2022; 26:1600-1606. [PMID: 33502953 DOI: 10.1080/13811118.2021.1875942] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Media reporting of celebrities' deaths by suicide are prone to suicide contagion effects. The aim of the current study is to examine whether the widely publicized celebrity suicide of Ari Behn in Norway was associated with changes in search activity of suicide-related terms. METHOD Search activity data for the terms "suicide," "Ari Behn suicide," "how to suicide," and "suicide prevention" were retrieved from Google Trends. We analyzed data as an interrupted time series and used T-tests to compare means before and after the suicide. Crude linear models examining the association between searches for "suicide" over time and an adjusted model controlling for searches after "Ari Behn suicide" were built. The models were tested with structural change tests. RESULTS A significant increase in search activity for "suicide" (p = < .001), "Ari Behn suicide" (p = .002), and "how to suicide" (p = .006) was found after the suicide. Searches for "suicide prevention" were not significant (p = .11). The structural change test was significant both for the model that did not control for explicit searches (p = <.001) and for the model controlled for explicit searches (p = <.001). CONCLUSIONS A recent widely publicized suicide in Norway was associated with increases in Google searches for suicide. No indications of the Papageno effect were found. The media should be cautious when reporting about the suicides of prominent public persons. Compliance with generally accepted media reporting guidelines may need more attention.HIGHLIGHTSWe found a significant increase in search activity for suicide related terms.More attention should be devoted to careful media reporting on celebrity suicides.Media should consider the volume of publicity carefully.
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16
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Jang J, Myung W, Kim S, Han M, Yook V, Kim EJ, Jeon HJ. Effect of suicide prevention law and media guidelines on copycat suicide of general population following celebrity suicides in South Korea, 2005-2017. Aust N Z J Psychiatry 2022; 56:542-550. [PMID: 34231416 DOI: 10.1177/00048674211025701] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To prevent copycat suicides following media reporting of celebrity suicides, the South Korean government enacted a 'suicide prevention law' in 2012 and revised the media guidelines for suicide reporting in 2013. This study examined how these two regulatory measures affected suicide trends among the general population in South Korea. METHODS We analyzed the individual effect estimates for the general population within 30 days following the media report of 24 celebrity suicides using multivariate negative binomial regression. We performed a meta-analysis to compute the pooled rate ratios of the two regulations. We examined the trends in daily suicides by month during three time intervals before and after enactment using an autoregressive model and tested their significance using a piecewise linear regression. RESULTS Total suicides increased by 6.27 daily during the 30-day period after celebrity suicides. Compared with the 30 days prior to the reports on the suicide of 24 celebrities, the number of suicidal deaths in the general population increased by 13% during the 30 days after the reports were announced (pooled rate ratio 1.13, 95% confidence interval: 0.06-0.18; p < 0.001). There was a significant downward trend in the average daily suicide deaths, and no significant increase in suicide rates, after the enactment of the suicide prevention law (p < 0.001) and revision of the media guidelines (p = 0.014). CONCLUSIONS Suicide prevention and media guidelines were effective in reducing the effect of celebrity suicides. In addition to regulating media reporting of celebrity suicide, measures are needed to address viral republication on social media and to prevent suicide among entertainers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jihoon Jang
- Department of Psychiatry, Depression Center, Samsung Medical Center, School of Medicine, Sungkyunkwan University, Seoul, Korea.,Department of Research and Analysis, Korea Psychological Autopsy Center (KPAC), Seoul, Korea.,Department of Psychiatry, Keyo Hospital, Uiwang, Korea
| | - Woojae Myung
- Department of Neurosychiatry, Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, Seongnam, Korea
| | - Seongcheol Kim
- Department of Statistical Analysis, Korea Suicide Prevention Center (KPAC), Seoul, Korea
| | - Minhee Han
- Department of Statistical Analysis, Korea Suicide Prevention Center (KPAC), Seoul, Korea
| | - Vidal Yook
- Department of Psychiatry, Depression Center, Samsung Medical Center, School of Medicine, Sungkyunkwan University, Seoul, Korea
| | - Eun Ji Kim
- Department of Psychiatry, Depression Center, Samsung Medical Center, School of Medicine, Sungkyunkwan University, Seoul, Korea.,Department of Research and Analysis, Korea Psychological Autopsy Center (KPAC), Seoul, Korea
| | - Hong Jin Jeon
- Department of Psychiatry, Depression Center, Samsung Medical Center, School of Medicine, Sungkyunkwan University, Seoul, Korea.,Department of Research and Analysis, Korea Psychological Autopsy Center (KPAC), Seoul, Korea.,Department of Health Sciences and Technology, Samsung Advanced Institute for Health Sciences & Technology (SAIHST), Sungkyunkwan University, Seoul, Korea.,Department of Medical Device Management and Research, Samsung Advanced Institute for Health Sciences & Technology (SAIHST), Sungkyunkwan University, Seoul, Korea.,Department of Clinical Research Design and Evaluation, Samsung Advanced Institute for Health Sciences & Technology (SAIHST), Sungkyunkwan University, Seoul, Korea
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17
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Menon V, Kar SK, Ransing R, Sharma G, Pattnaik JI, Kaliamoorthy C, Varadharajan N, Mukherjee S, Agrawal A, Padhy SK, Arafat SY. Changing trends in quality of media reporting of suicide in the community following a celebrity suicide in India. Aust N Z J Psychiatry 2022; 56:81-90. [PMID: 33938292 DOI: 10.1177/00048674211009618] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Little is known about changes in quality of media reporting of suicide in the community following a celebrity suicide. Our objective was to compare trends in quality of media reporting of suicide, before and after the suicide of an Indian entertainment celebrity, against the World Health Organization suicide reporting guidelines. METHOD Online news portals of English and local language newspapers, as well as television channels, were searched to identify relevant suicide-related news articles. Comparison of reporting characteristics before and after the celebrity suicide was performed using chi-square test or Fisher's exact test. RESULTS A total of 3867 eligible news reports were retrieved. There was a significant increase in harmful reporting characteristics, such as reporting the name, age and gender of the deceased (p < 0.001 for all comparisons), mentioning the location (p < 0.001) and reason for suicide (p = 0.04) and including photos of the deceased (p = 0.002) following the celebrity suicide. Helpful reporting practices were less affected; there was a significant rise in inclusion of expert opinion (p = 0.04) and mention of suicide-related warning signs (p = 0.02). CONCLUSION Following a celebrity suicide, significant changes in the quality of media reporting of suicide were noted with an increase in several potentially harmful reporting characteristics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vikas Menon
- Department of Psychiatry, Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research (JIPMER), Puducherry, India
| | - Sujita Kumar Kar
- Department of Psychiatry, King George's Medical University, Lucknow, India
| | - Ramdas Ransing
- Department of Psychiatry, B.K.L. Walawalkar Rural Medical College, Ratnagiri, India
| | - Ginni Sharma
- Department of Psychiatry, King George's Medical University, Lucknow, India
| | | | - Charanya Kaliamoorthy
- Department of Psychiatry, Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research (JIPMER), Puducherry, India
| | - Natarajan Varadharajan
- Department of Psychiatry, Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research (JIPMER), Puducherry, India
| | | | - Aditya Agrawal
- Department of Psychiatry, King George's Medical University, Lucknow, India
| | - Susanta Kumar Padhy
- Department of Psychiatry, All India Institute of Medical Sciences Bhubaneswar, Bhubaneswar, India
| | - Sm Yasir Arafat
- Department of Psychiatry, Enam Medical College & Hospital, Dhaka, Bangladesh
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18
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Kar SK, Padhy SK, Bhoi R, Pattnaik JI, Menon V. Quality of newspaper reporting of suicide in Odisha, India, against the World Health Organization guidelines. Indian J Psychiatry 2022; 64:80-83. [PMID: 35400754 PMCID: PMC8992751 DOI: 10.4103/indianjpsychiatry.indianjpsychiatry_398_21] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2021] [Revised: 12/04/2021] [Accepted: 12/19/2021] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Imbalanced media reporting of suicide may increase suicide risk among vulnerable individuals. AIM This study aims to assess the quality of suicide reporting in print newspapers of Odisha, a high suicide burden state in Eastern India. MATERIALS AND METHODS We analyzed all eligible media reports of suicide in selected English and local language printed newspapers of Odisha between October 1, 2019, and September 30, 2020. Quality assessment was carried out against international as well as local reporting guidelines. RESULTS A total of 248 news reports were analyzed. Majority of the articles reported identifying details (such as name [74.2%], age [60.9%], and gender [98.4%] of deceased) as well as a detailed description about the suicide event (suicide method [87.5%] and location [84.3%]). More than half (54.8%) of the reports attributed suicide to a single cause. CONCLUSION Suicide reports in print newspapers of Odisha are poorly adherent to local and international suicide reporting guidelines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sujita Kumar Kar
- Department of Psychiatry, King George's Medical University, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India
| | - Susanta Kumar Padhy
- Department of Psychiatry, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
| | - Rosali Bhoi
- Department of Psychiatry, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
| | - Jigyansa Ipsita Pattnaik
- Department of Psychiatry, Kalinga Institute of Medical Sciences (KIMS), KIIT University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
| | - Vikas Menon
- Department of Psychiatry, Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research, Puducherry, India
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19
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Abstract
Purpose of Review Suicide is a serious healthcare concern worldwide. In the USA, suicide was the tenth leading cause of death prior to 2020 when it was displaced as a result of the death toll from COVID-19. Recent Findings Suicide behavior is the result of the interaction between the individual’s predisposing factors and precipitating factors. A recognized precipitating factor is the knowledge of the suicidal act of another, termed suicide contagion. Another precipitating factor is the physiological impact of an acute inflammatory response to disease, for example that seen in patients with COVID-19. Summary Risk identification of persons at increased risk for suicidal actions is an essential goal in medical care so that protective measures can be employed to prevent suicide.
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20
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Walter K, Wathelet M, Valdenaire S, Grandgenèvre P, Pauwels N, Vaiva G, Notredame CE. A Short Media Training Session Is Effective in Reinforcing Psychiatrists' Communication Skills About Suicide. Front Psychol 2021; 12:733691. [PMID: 34603154 PMCID: PMC8481656 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.733691] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2021] [Accepted: 08/19/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Because it has been associated with significant increases [through the Werther Effect (WE)] or decreases [through the Papageno Effect (PE)] of suicide rates, media coverage of suicide-related events is recognized as a prevention leverage. Unfortunately, the recommendations that the World Health Organization (WHO) has published to help journalists reporting on suicide remain poorly applied. The Mini Media Training (MMT) is a short media training session designed to increase psychiatrists’ ability to communicate about suicide during interviews. We aimed at assessing the effect of the MMT on psychiatrists’ ability to help journalists complying with the WHO recommendations. From June 2017 to December 2019, 173 physicians and residents in psychiatry were recruited during French national congresses. At baseline (T0) and 1 and 3 months later (T1), participants received the MMT, which consisted in a simulated interview where they we asked to answer a journalist about a mock suicide. Communication skills were measured with a score summing the number of delivered pieces of advice in relation to the WHO recommendations, with a maximum score of 33. A weighted score was also derived based on the degree of directivity needed for the participant to provide these items, again with a possible maximum of 33. A total of 132 psychiatrists participated in the study at T0 and T1. Both the weighted and unweighted score significantly increased from T0 to T1 (d = +2.08, p < 0.001, and d = +1.24, p < 0.001, respectively). Having a history of contacts with journalists, a short professional experience (<3 years) and prior knowledge of the WE, PE, and WHO recommendations were significantly associated with greater unweighted and weighted scores at baseline. The latter two variables also predicted greater T0–T1 improvement of the weighted score. These results suggest that the MMT could be effective for improving the ability of psychiatrists to guide journalists toward more responsible media coverage of suicide. As a short, easy to implement educational activity, the MMT could therefore be considered in association with other measures to help media professionals mitigating the WE and promoting the PE.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karl Walter
- Psychiatry Department, CHU Lille, Lille, France.,Papageno Program, Lille, France
| | - Marielle Wathelet
- Psychiatry Department, CHU Lille, Lille, France.,Fédération Régionale de Recherche en Psychiatrie et Santé Mentale Hauts-de-France (F2RSM Psy), Saint-André, France.,Centre National de Ressources et Résilience pour les Psychotraumatismes (Cn2r), Lille, France.,PSY Lab, Lille Neuroscience & Cognition Centre, INSERM U1172, University of Lille, Lille, France
| | | | - Pierre Grandgenèvre
- Psychiatry Department, CHU Lille, Lille, France.,Papageno Program, Lille, France
| | - Nathalie Pauwels
- Papageno Program, Lille, France.,Fédération Régionale de Recherche en Psychiatrie et Santé Mentale Hauts-de-France (F2RSM Psy), Saint-André, France
| | - Guillaume Vaiva
- Psychiatry Department, CHU Lille, Lille, France.,Centre National de Ressources et Résilience pour les Psychotraumatismes (Cn2r), Lille, France.,PSY Lab, Lille Neuroscience & Cognition Centre, INSERM U1172, University of Lille, Lille, France
| | - Charles-Edouard Notredame
- Psychiatry Department, CHU Lille, Lille, France.,Papageno Program, Lille, France.,PSY Lab, Lille Neuroscience & Cognition Centre, INSERM U1172, University of Lille, Lille, France
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21
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Abstract
BACKGROUND AND AIMS Numbers of drug-overdose deaths, both intentionally and unintentionally, have been increasing in the United States. Of interest, Google spotlights counselling services as helpful resources when users query for suicide-related search terms. However, the search engine does so at varying display rates, depending on terms used. Display rates in the drug-overdose deaths domain are unknown. METHODS We emulated suicide-related potentially harmful searches at large scale across the U.S. to explore Google's response to search queries including or excluding additional drug-related terms. Employing agent-based testing we conducted 215,999 search requests with varying combinations of search terms. RESULTS Counseling services such as helpline telephone numbers were displayed at high rates after suicide-related potentially harmful search queries (e.g., "how to commit suicide"). While this is a desirable outcome, display rates were substantially lower when drug-related terms, indicative of users' suicidal overdosing tendencies, were added (e.g., "how to commit suicide fentanyl"). Importantly, the addition of any drug-related search term to the suicide-related queries decreased the display frequency of helpful prevention-related resources substantially. CONCLUSIONS Search queries such as "easy way to commit suicide fentanyl" may indicate acute suicidal crises. Helpful resources should be displayed right in such search moments. Search engines should adjust their algorithms to increase these display rates to direct users to such resources. By doing this, search engines may contribute to the prevention of drug-related suicides.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mario Haim
- University of Leipzig, Department of Communication and Media Studies, Germany
| | - Sebastian Scherr
- Texas A&M University, Department of Communication, United States.
| | - Florian Arendt
- University of Vienna, Department of Communication, Austria
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Niederkrotenthaler T, Kirchner S, Till B, Sinyor M, Tran US, Pirkis J, Spittal MJ. Systematic review and meta-analyses of suicidal outcomes following fictional portrayals of suicide and suicide attempt in entertainment media. EClinicalMedicine 2021; 36:100922. [PMID: 34308310 PMCID: PMC8257930 DOI: 10.1016/j.eclinm.2021.100922] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2021] [Revised: 04/30/2021] [Accepted: 05/06/2021] [Indexed: 12/05/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Guidelines to encourage responsible reporting of suicide in news media are a key component of suicide prevention strategies. Recent guidelines have been developed on portrayal of suicide in entertainment media although the relationship between these portrayals and subsequent suicidal behaviour has received considerably less attention in research. METHODS We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to examine the association between portrayals of suicide and suicide attempt in entertainment media and suicidal behaviour in the population. We searched PubMed, Scopus, Embase, PsycInfo, Web of Science and Google Scholar until April 20, 2021. We included studies adopting interrupted time series or single/multiple arm pre-post designs. Separate analyses were undertaken for studies of suicide and suicide attempts. We synthesized studies at moderate risk of bias and included studies at serious risk in a sensitivity analysis. Using a random-effects meta-analysis, we synthesized studies at moderate risk of bias and included studies at serious risk in a sensitivity analysis. Study registration: PROSPERO (CRD42020221333). FINDINGS Twelve studies met our inclusion criteria. Six studies were about suicide. Two of these were at moderate risk of bias and both examined the effects of the Netflix series 13 Reasons Why. The pooled rate ratio (RR) for these studies was 1·18 (95% CI 1·09 to 1·27, p<0·001). Heterogeneity was low (I2 = 29%). Six studies focused on suicide attempts, and two of them were at moderate risk of bias. The pooled RR for these two studies was 1·33 (95% CI 0·84 to 2·09, p = 0·22). Heterogeneity was high (I2 = 92%). Enhanced funnel plots indicated likely publication bias for studies of suicide and possible bias for studies of attempted suicide. INTERPRETATION Portrayals of suicide in entertainment media may increase suicides and attempted suicide in the population. More studies that limit the potential sources of bias are needed to fully understand the circumstances under which fictional portrayals may influence suicidal behaviour. FUNDING None.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Niederkrotenthaler
- Unit Suicide Research & Mental Health Promotion, Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Center for Public Health, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- Wiener Werkstaette for Suicide Research, Vienna, Austria
- Corresponding author.
| | - Stefanie Kirchner
- Unit Suicide Research & Mental Health Promotion, Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Center for Public Health, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- Wiener Werkstaette for Suicide Research, Vienna, Austria
| | - Benedikt Till
- Unit Suicide Research & Mental Health Promotion, Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Center for Public Health, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- Wiener Werkstaette for Suicide Research, Vienna, Austria
| | - Mark Sinyor
- Department of Psychiatry, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | - Ulrich S. Tran
- Wiener Werkstaette for Suicide Research, Vienna, Austria
- School of Psychology, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Jane Pirkis
- Centre for Mental Health, Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Matthew J. Spittal
- Centre for Mental Health, Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia
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Menon V, Kar SK, Ransing R, Arafat SY, Padhy SK. National Media Monitoring Agency for reporting of suicide: An idea whose time has come? Asian J Psychiatr 2021; 55:102516. [PMID: 33360714 DOI: 10.1016/j.ajp.2020.102516] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2020] [Revised: 11/17/2020] [Accepted: 12/08/2020] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Vikas Menon
- Dept of Psychiatry, Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research (JIPMER), Puducherry, 605006, India.
| | - Sujita Kumar Kar
- Department of Psychiatry, King George's Medical University, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, 226003, India
| | - Ramdas Ransing
- Department of Psychiatry, BKL Walalwalkar Rural Medical College, Ratnagiri, Maharashtra, 415606, India
| | - Sm Yasir Arafat
- Department of Psychiatry, Enam Medical College and Hospital, Dhaka, 1340, Bangladesh
| | - Susanta Kumar Padhy
- Dept of Psychiatry, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, 751019, India
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24
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Niederkrotenthaler T, Till B. Effects of suicide awareness materials on individuals with recent suicidal ideation or attempt: online randomised controlled trial. Br J Psychiatry 2020; 217:693-700. [PMID: 31843026 DOI: 10.1192/bjp.2019.259] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Awareness materials featuring ways of coping with suicidal ideation can reduce suicidal ideation, the so-called Papageno effect. All of the previous experimental studies on this subject have been conducted with individuals not at risk of suicide. AIMS To assess effects of suicide awareness materials in a sample of individuals with recent suicidal ideation. Trial registration: German Clinical Trial Registry ID number DRKS00013613. METHOD Adults (n = 266) with recent self-reported suicidal ideation or attempt were randomised to read an educative article featuring a lay individual with personal experience of suicidality (n = 86), a similar article featuring a mental health expert (n = 90), or an unrelated article (n = 90) in a double-blind online randomised controlled trial. Questionnaire data were collected before (T1) and immediately after exposure (T2) as well as 1 week later (study end-point, T3) and analysed with linear mixed models. The primary outcome was suicide risk as assessed using the Survival and Coping Beliefs subscale of the Reasons for Living Inventory (RFLI); secondary outcomes were suicide-prevention knowledge and mood. RESULTS There was an immediate beneficial effect on suicide risk in the intervention group exposed to the message delivered by the individual with personal experience (group 1) as compared with the control group that was maintained until the study end-point (study end-point: RFLI score mean difference from baseline within group 1 MD = -0.36 (95% CI -0.66 to -0.06), mean difference compared with control group MD = -0.71 (95% CI -1.27 to -0.14); d = -0.18). The effect was particularly pronounced for individuals with recent suicide attempt (RFLI score at T3, compared with control group: MD = -1.55 (95% CI -2.52 to -0.57); d = -0.23). Participants in this group also showed increased prevention-related knowledge compared with the control group. CONCLUSIONS Individuals with a recent suicide attempt appear to benefit from a printed narrative of positive coping with suicidal ideation. The intervention materials do not increase short-term suicide risk.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Niederkrotenthaler
- Unit Suicide Research & Mental Health Promotion, Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Center for Public Health, Medical University of Vienna, Austria
| | - Benedikt Till
- Unit Suicide Research & Mental Health Promotion, Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Center for Public Health, Medical University of Vienna, Austria
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Abstract
Recent research estimated that an additional 195 suicides among 10- to 17-year-old youths occurred following the release of the television series 13 Reasons Why. There is an underrecognised aspect in this line of research that this effect represents a net effect based on different possible underlying patterns (e.g. +195/-0 or +395/-200).
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Affiliation(s)
- Florian Arendt
- Tenure Track Professor in Health Communication, Department of Communication, University of Vienna, Austria
| | - Daniel Romer
- Research Director, Annenberg Public Policy Center, University of Pennsylvania, USA
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Ganesh R, Singh S, Mishra R, Sagar R. The quality of online media reporting of celebrity suicide in India and its association with subsequent online suicide-related search behaviour among general population: An infodemiology study. Asian J Psychiatr 2020; 53:102380. [PMID: 32937236 PMCID: PMC7455521 DOI: 10.1016/j.ajp.2020.102380] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2020] [Accepted: 08/25/2020] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
Abstract
The literature reports increased suicide rates among general population in the weeks following the celebrity suicide, known as the Werther effect. The World Health Organization (WHO) has developed guidelines for responsible media reporting of suicide. The present study aimed to assess the quality of online media reporting of a recent celebrity suicide in India and its impact on the online suicide related search behaviour of the population. A total of 200 online media reports about Sushant Singh Rajput's suicide published between 14th to 20th June 2020 were assessed for quality of reporting following the checklist prepared using the WHO guidelines. Further, we examined the change in online suicide-seeking and help-seeking search behaviour of the population following celebrity suicide for the month of June using selected keywords. In terms of potentially harmful media reportage, 85.5 % of online reports violated at least one WHO media reporting guideline. In terms of potentially helpful media reportage, only 13 % articles provided information about where to seek help for suicidal thoughts or ideation. There was a significant increase in online suicide-seeking (U = 0.5, p < 0.05) and help-seeking (U = 6.5, p < 0.05) behaviour after the reference event, when compared to baseline. However, the online peak search interest for suicide-seeking was greater than help-seeking. This provides support for a strong Werther effect, possibly associated with poor quality of media reporting of celebrity suicide. There is an urgent need for taking steps to improve the quality of media reporting of suicide in India.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ragul Ganesh
- Department of Psychiatry, All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi, 110029, India
| | - Swarndeep Singh
- Department of Psychiatry, All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi, 110029, India
| | - Rajan Mishra
- Department of Psychiatry, All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi, 110029, India
| | - Rajesh Sagar
- Department of Psychiatry, All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi, 110029, India.
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Antebi L, Carmichael V, Whitley R. Assessing Adherence to Responsible Reporting of Suicide Guidelines in the Canadian News Media: A 1-year Examination of Day-to-day Suicide Coverage: Évaluer la conformité au journalisme responsable en matière de directives sur le suicide dans les médias canadiens d'information: Un examen d'une année de la couverture quotidienne du suicide. Can J Psychiatry 2020; 65:621-629. [PMID: 32588647 PMCID: PMC7457458 DOI: 10.1177/0706743720936462] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE This study aims to examine routine day-to-day suicide reporting in the Canadian media, giving a descriptive overview of the tone and content of news articles. The primary objective is to assess adherence to responsible reporting of suicide recommendations in news articles about suicide. A secondary objective is to categorize these articles according to their focus. A tertiary objective is to compare guideline adherence across the different categories of articles. METHODS We collected news articles containing the keyword "suicide" from 47 Canadian news sources between April 1, 2019, and March 31, 2020. Articles were read and coded for their adherence to responsible reporting of suicide recommendations. Articles were also allotted into categories according to their focus and primary suicide discussed. Frequency counts and percentages of adherence were calculated for all key variables-both overall and by category of article. Chi-square tests were also conducted to assess for variations in adherence by category of article. RESULTS The procedures resulted in 1,330 coded articles. On the one hand, there was high overall adherence to several recommendations. For example, over 80% of articles did not give a monocausal explanation, glamourize the death, appear on the front page, include sensational language, or use discouraged words. On the other hand, there was low adherence to other recommendations, especially those related to putatively protective content. For example, less than 25% included help-seeking information, quoted an expert, or included educational content. Cross-category analysis indicated that articles about events/policies/research and Indigenous people had the highest proportions of adherence, while articles about murder-suicide and high-profile suicides had the lowest adherence. CONCLUSIONS While a substantial proportion of articles generally adhere to suicide reporting recommendations, several guidelines are frequently underapplied, especially those concerning putatively helpful content. This indicates room for improvement in the responsible reporting of suicide.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lara Antebi
- Douglas Mental Health University Institute Research Centre, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Victoria Carmichael
- Douglas Mental Health University Institute Research Centre, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Rob Whitley
- Douglas Mental Health University Institute Research Centre, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.,5620McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
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28
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Sinyor M, Williams M, Tran US, Schaffer A, Kurdyak P, Pirkis J, Niederkrotenthaler T. Suicides in Young People in Ontario Following the Release of "13 Reasons Why". Can J Psychiatry 2019; 64:798-804. [PMID: 31434503 PMCID: PMC6882071 DOI: 10.1177/0706743719870507] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE "13 Reasons Why," a Netflix series, included a controversial depiction of suicide that has raised fears about possible contagion. Studies of youth suicide in the United States found an increase on the order of 10% following release of the show, but this has not been replicated in other countries. This study aims to begin to address that gap by examining the relationship between the show's release and youth suicide in Canada's most populous province. METHODS Suicides in young people (under the age of 30) in the province of Ontario following the show's release on March 31, 2017, were the outcome of interest. Time-series analyses were performed using data from January 2013 to March 2017 to predict expected deaths from April to December 2017 with a simple seasonal model (stationary R 2 = 0.732, Ljung-Box Q = 15.1, df = 16, P = 0.52, Bayesian information criterion = 3.09) providing the best fit/used for the primary analysis. RESULTS Modeling predicted 224 suicides; however, 264 were observed corresponding to 40 more deaths or an 18% increase. In the primary analysis, monthly suicides exceeded the 95% confidence limit for 3 of the 9 months (May, July, and October). CONCLUSION The statistical strength of the findings here is limited by small numbers; however, the results are in line with what has been observed in the United States and what would be expected if contagion were occurring. Further research in other locations is needed to increase confidence that the associations found here are causal.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mark Sinyor
- Department of Psychiatry, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.,Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Marissa Williams
- Department of Psychiatry, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Ulrich S Tran
- Department of Basic Psychological Research and Research Methods, School of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Ayal Schaffer
- Department of Psychiatry, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.,Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Paul Kurdyak
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.,Health Systems Research, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.,Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.,Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Jane Pirkis
- Centre for Mental Health, Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Thomas Niederkrotenthaler
- Unit Suicide Research & Mental Health Promotion, Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Center for Public Health, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
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Gauld C, Wathelet M, Medjkane F, Pauwels N, Bougerol T, Notredame CE. Construction and Validation of an Analytical Grid about Video Representations of Suicide ("MoVIES"). Int J Environ Res Public Health 2019; 16:E2780. [PMID: 31382598 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph16152780] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2019] [Revised: 07/24/2019] [Accepted: 08/01/2019] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Background. Exposure to fictional suicide scenes raises concerns about the risk of suicide contagion. However, researchers and clinicians still lack empirical evidence to estimate this risk. Here, we propose a theory-grounded tool that measures properties related to aberrant identification and suicidal contagion of potentially harmful suicide scenes. Methods. The items of the Movies and Video: Identification and Emotions in reaction to Suicide (MoVIES) operationalize the World Health Organization’s recommendations for media coverage of suicide, and were adapted and completed with identification theory principles and cinematographic evidence. Inter-rater reliability (Cohen’s kappa) and internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha) were estimated and optimized for two series of 19 and 30 randomly selected movies depicting a suicide scene. The validity of the scale in predicting identification with the suicidal character was tested in nine unknowledgeable participants who watched seven suicide movie scenes each. Results. The MoVIES indicated satisfying psychometric properties with kappas measured at 0.7 or more for every item and a global internal consistency of [α = 0.05]. The MoVIES score significantly predicted participants’ strength of identification independently from their baseline empathy ((β = 0.20), p < 0.05). Conclusions. The MoVIES is available to scholars as a valid, reliable, and useful tool to estimate the amount of at-risk components of fictional suicidal behavior depicted in films, series, or television shows.
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Abstract
This study investigated associations between indiscriminate media reporting of suicides and later inflated suicide counts among Israel's general population between the years 2008 and 2012. Self-inflicted deaths that received post-suicide media exposure (referred to as "publicized suicides") were selected via Google news search-hit appraisals. Distributions of suicides were inspected and risk ratios (RRs) estimated by comparing population suicide rates 4 weeks before and 4 weeks after each publicized suicide ("reference" vs. "affected" periods, respectively). Poisson time series regression was employed to account also for secular trends and seasonality. A total of 2,119 people died by suicide, 13 of whom received noticeable media attention throughout the study. No meaningful impact following the 13 deaths on subsequent suicide counts during the observation window (affected vs. reference phase) was found. Poisson regression confirmed that suicide counts following publicized suicides were independent of media coverage. Given the pronounced search hits following the publicized suicides developing regulation practices that constrain indiscreet media reporting should officially be included as part of suicide prevention practices. Future research should focus on imitation suicide effects as a function of post-suicide media exposure, while including both risk and protective factors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shelly S Bakst
- a Ministry of Health , Israel Center for Disease Control (ICDC) , Ramat Gan , Israel
| | - Yakir Berchenko
- b Biostatistics Unit Gertner Institute for Epidemiology and Health Policy Research , Ramat Gan , Israel.,c Department of Industrial Engineering and Management , Ben Gurion University of the Negev , Be'er-Sheva , Israel
| | - Tali Braun
- a Ministry of Health , Israel Center for Disease Control (ICDC) , Ramat Gan , Israel
| | - Tamy Shohat
- a Ministry of Health , Israel Center for Disease Control (ICDC) , Ramat Gan , Israel.,d Sackler Faculty of Medicine , Tel Aviv University , Tel Aviv , Israel
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31
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Arendt F. The Press and Suicides in the 19th Century: Investigating Possible Imitative Effects in Five Territories of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Omega (Westport) 2018; 81:424-435. [PMID: 29895217 DOI: 10.1177/0030222818782811] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
During the 19th century, suicide rates increased in many countries. The press may have contributed to this increase, even though empirical evidence is lacking in this regard. We assessed suicide statistics within five territories of the Austro-Hungarian Empire between 1871 and 1910 and combined these data with a content analysis of suicide reporting in five newspapers, each appearing in one of the five territories. The analysis revealed a covariation between the quantity of reporting and the number of suicides within all five regions. Furthermore, the quantity of reporting significantly predicted the following year's suicides. Although the causal order of suicides and the quantity of reporting should be assessed with caution, evidence is consistent with the idea that the press may have contributed to the establishment of suicide as a mass phenomenon. The findings also support contemporary guidelines for journalists, especially the notion of avoiding undue repetition of suicide stories.
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Affiliation(s)
- Florian Arendt
- Department of Communication Science and Media Research, University of Munich (LMU), Munich, Germany
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32
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Abstract
BACKGROUND Suicide rates increased substantially in many countries during the 19th century. Little is known about news coverage on suicide in this period and its relationship to suicide rates. AIMS To test whether there was a covariation between the quantity of reporting and suicide rates and whether the press relied on sensational reporting. METHOD A content analysis of Austrian news coverage between 1819 and 1944 was conducted and compared with contemporary findings. RESULTS There were similar corresponding troughs and peaks in both time series, indicative of covariation. The analysis revealed that variations in the quantity of reporting predicted the following year's suicide rates, a pattern consistent with a long-term Werther effect. Conversely, suicide rates did not predict future values of the quantity of reporting. Furthermore, the press substantially overrepresented "vivid" firearm suicides compared with other more "pallid" methods such as drowning, indicative of sensational reporting. LIMITATIONS The causal order of the quantity of reporting and suicide rates should be interpreted with caution. CONCLUSION The press may have contributed to the establishment of suicide as a mass phenomenon in the 19th century. The contemporary comparison is indicative of temporal stability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Florian Arendt
- 1 Department of Communication Science and Media Research, University of Munich (LMU), Germany
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Laukkala T, Vuorio A, Bor R, Budowle B, Navathe P, Pukkala E, Sajantila A. Copycats in Pilot Aircraft-Assisted Suicides after the Germanwings Incident. Int J Environ Res Public Health 2018. [PMID: 29534475 PMCID: PMC5877036 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph15030491] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Aircraft-assisted pilot suicide is a rare but serious phenomenon. The aim of this study was to evaluate changes in pilot aircraft-assisted suicide risks, i.e., a copycat effect, in the U.S. and Germany after the Germanwings 2015 incident in the French Alps. Aircraft-assisted pilot suicides were searched in the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) accident investigation database and in the German Bundestelle für Flugunfalluntersuchung (BFU) Reports of Investigation database five years before and two years after the deliberate crash of the Germanwings flight into the French Alps in 2015. The relative risk (RR) of the aircraft-assisted pilot suicides was calculated. Two years after the incident, three out of 454 (0.66%) fatal incidents were aircraft-assisted suicides compared with six out of 1292 (0.46%) in the prior five years in the NTSB database. There were no aircraft-assisted pilot suicides in the German database during the two years after or five years prior to the Germanwings crash. The relative aircraft-assisted pilot suicide risk for the U.S. was 1.4 (95% CI 0.3–4.2) which was not statistically significant. Six of the pilots who died by suicide had told someone of their suicidal intentions. We consider changes in the rate to be within a normal variation. Responsible media coverage of aircraft incidents is important due to the large amount of publicity that these events attract.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tanja Laukkala
- Mehiläinen Kielotie Health Centre, Vantaa 01300, Finland.
| | - Alpo Vuorio
- Department of Forensic Medicine, University of Helsinki and Mehiläinen Airport Health Centre, Lentäjäntie 1 E, 01530 Vantaa, Finland.
| | - Robert Bor
- Royal Free Hospital, Pond Street, London NW3 2QG, UK.
- Centre for Aviation Psychology, London NW3 1ND, UK.
| | - Bruce Budowle
- Center for Human Identification, University of North Texas Health Science Center, 3500 Camp Bowie Blvd., Fort Worth, TX 76107, USA.
- Center of Excellence in Genomic Medicine Research (CEGMR), King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah 21577, Saudi Arabia.
| | | | - Eero Pukkala
- Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Tampere, 33100 Tampere, Finland.
| | - Antti Sajantila
- Department of Forensic Medicine, University of Helsinki, 00014 Helsinki, Finland.
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Acosta Artiles FJ, Rodriguez Rodríguez-Caro CJ, Cejas Méndez MR. [Reporting on Suicide. WHO recommendations for the Media.]. Rev Esp Salud Publica 2017; 91:e201710040. [PMID: 29064462] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2017] [Accepted: 09/15/2017] [Indexed: 06/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Inappropriate reporting on suicide in the media may lead to a contagious effect or "Werther effect", while appropriate characteristics may have a protective effect or "Papageno effect". Therefore, the media can contribute to the prevention of suicide. For this reason, the WHO has developed three documents with recommendations for media professionals about how to report on suicide. However, only the first one has been translated into Spanish, they have overlaps and have a different structure. Therefore, Spanish-speaking media professionals in general, and Spanish ones in particular, can hardly have access to these WHO recommendations displayed in a clear and concise manner. The objective of this work was the elaboration and provision of a single and concise text that includes the recommendations of these documents. A formal and structured procedure was followed, combining scientific and linguistic criteria. The final text contains the recommendations grouped into three categories: "what to do", "what not to do" and "other recommendations". This document can be very useful for media professionals, for training activities to disseminate such recommendations for preventive purposes, and for research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Francisco Javier Acosta Artiles
- Servicio de Psiquiatría. Complejo Hospitalario Universitario Insular Materno-Infantil. Gran Canaria, Canarias, España
- Programa de Investigación en Salud Mental de Canarias. Servicio de Salud Mental. Dirección General de Programas Asistenciales. Gran Canaria, Canarias, España
- Red de Investigación en Servicios de Salud en Enfermedades Crónicas (REDISSEC). Instituto de Salud Carlos III
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35
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Çelik M, Kalenderoğlu A, Almiş H, Turgut M. Copycat Suicides Without an Intention to Die After Watching TV Programs: Two Cases at Five Years of Age. Noro Psikiyatr Ars 2016; 53:83-84. [PMID: 28360772 DOI: 10.5152/npa.2015.9988] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2014] [Accepted: 02/18/2015] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Suicide is an intentional self-destructive act. As conceptualization of death as an irreversible end occurs at approximately 8-10 years, attempted and completed suicides are rare before 7 years of age. Studies have suggested that media may contribute to increased suicides in adolescents through social learning. Effects of media on suicides were thoroughly evaluated in children and adolescents who committed suicide after identifying with the subject of a TV program, movie, or book. We present 2 cases at 5 years of age who committed suicide by hanging themselves after watching a TV program. These cases differed from copycat suicides reported in the literature that are performed mostly by adolescents because victims are very young children and because they died without an actual intent to die while they were imitating suicides. By presenting these cases, we want to emphasize that destructive effects of media may involve not only adults and adolescents but also very young children who do not have a completely developed concept of death.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mustafa Çelik
- Department of Psychiatry, Adıyaman University School of Medicine, Adıyaman, Turkey
| | - Aysun Kalenderoğlu
- Department of Psychiatry, Adıyaman University School of Medicine, Adıyaman, Turkey
| | - Habib Almiş
- Department of Pediatrics, Adıyaman University School of Medicine, Adıyaman, Turkey
| | - Mehmet Turgut
- Department of Pediatrics, Adıyaman University School of Medicine, Adıyaman, Turkey
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Abstract
Psychiatrists performing activities under the Mental Health Protection Act who in connection with their performance of such activities become aware of information that, if kept confidential, can constitute a threat to the life or health of the patient or other people, are released from the duty to keep such information confidential. In such a case, they have a moral and legal duty to disclose such information to law enforcement authorities and cannot be prosecuted under criminal law for disclosing such confidential information. An attempt to interrogate a physician who files such a report regarding circumstances of which he became aware while performing activities under the Mental Health Protection Act will, however, be illegal. Yet, that leads to disputes and controversies in the medical and legal communities, and, therefore, the issue requires a prompt, uniform interpretation. Due to the expected increase in attempted dyadic deaths (after the Germanwings plane crash,) the problem should be carefully regulated so that psychiatrists know the legal boundaries of dealing with patients - potential suicides.
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Koburger N, Mergl R, Rummel-Kluge C, Ibelshäuser A, Meise U, Postuvan V, Roskar S, Székely A, Ditta Tóth M, van der Feltz-Cornelis C, Hegerl U. Celebrity suicide on the railway network: Can one case trigger international effects? J Affect Disord 2015; 185:38-46. [PMID: 26143403 DOI: 10.1016/j.jad.2015.06.037] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2015] [Revised: 06/20/2015] [Accepted: 06/20/2015] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND After the railway suicide of the German national goalkeeper Robert Enke in 2009, a significant increase of railway suicides was observed nationally. This study analyses whether this incident also triggered copycat effects in other European countries. Additionally, media coverage proxied by Google Trends and long-term changes taking into account general changes in suicide rates and kilometres driven by trains were examined. METHODS The numbers of railway suicides before and after Enke´s suicide were analysed for short and long-term periods (2 weeks and 2 years post-event) across five European countries. Incidence ratios and resulting percentage changes were computed. RESULTS Similar to Germany, there were significant short and long-term effects for the combined data of the four other countries (increase of 93.9%; p=0.004 and 16.7%; p=0.003). There was no indication that long-term effects are a mere reflection of an overall increase in suicide frequencies or due to increased numbers of kilometres driven by trains. Analyses on country level revealed heterogeneous results. LIMITATIONS Due to incomplete data, analyses regarding age and gender were not performed. Media coverage was only proxied by a Google Trends analysis. The study includes a small sample of European countries. CONCLUSIONS Enke's suicide in 2009 was followed by increasing train suicide numbers in Europe. Although this incident may have reinforced an existing European trend of growing railway suicides, an international copycat effect and/or an increased overall awareness about this particular suicide method appears to be one likely explanation for the changes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicole Koburger
- Depression Research Centre, German Depression Foundation, Leipzig, Germany.
| | - Roland Mergl
- Depression Research Centre, German Depression Foundation, Leipzig, Germany; Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Christine Rummel-Kluge
- Depression Research Centre, German Depression Foundation, Leipzig, Germany; Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
| | | | - Ullrich Meise
- Society for Mental Health - pro mente tirol, Innsbruck, Austria
| | - Vita Postuvan
- Slovene Centre for Suicide Research, Institute Andrej Marusic, University of Primorska, Koper, Slovenia
| | - Saska Roskar
- National Institute for Public Health, Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - András Székely
- Institute of Behavioral Sciences, Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary
| | - Mónika Ditta Tóth
- Institute of Behavioral Sciences, Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary
| | - Christina van der Feltz-Cornelis
- Faculty of Social Sciences, Department Tranzo, University of Tilburg, Tilburg, Netherlands; Topclinical Center for Body, Mind and Health, GGz Breburg, Tilburg, Netherlands
| | - Ulrich Hegerl
- Depression Research Centre, German Depression Foundation, Leipzig, Germany; Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
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Kumar M, Dredze M, Coppersmith G, De Choudhury M. Detecting Changes in Suicide Content Manifested in Social Media Following Celebrity Suicides. HT ACM Conf Hypertext Soc Media 2015; 2015:85-94. [PMID: 28713876 DOI: 10.1145/2700171.2791026] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
The Werther effect describes the increased rate of completed or attempted suicides following the depiction of an individual's suicide in the media, typically a celebrity. We present findings on the prevalence of this effect in an online platform: r/SuicideWatch on Reddit. We examine both the posting activity and post content after the death of ten high-profile suicides. Posting activity increases following reports of celebrity suicides, and post content exhibits considerable changes that indicate increased suicidal ideation. Specifically, we observe that post-celebrity suicide content is more likely to be inward focused, manifest decreased social concerns, and laden with greater anxiety, anger, and negative emotion. Topic model analysis further reveals content in this period to switch to a more derogatory tone that bears evidence of self-harm and suicidal tendencies. We discuss the implications of our findings in enabling better community support to psychologically vulnerable populations, and the potential of building suicide prevention interventions following high-profile suicides.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mrinal Kumar
- College of Computing, Georgia Institute of Technology
| | - Mark Dredze
- Human Language Technology Center of Excellence, Johns Hopkins University
| | - Glen Coppersmith
- Human Language Technology Center of Excellence, Johns Hopkins University
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Maloney J, Pfuhlmann B, Arensman E, Coffey C, Gusmão R, Poštuvan V, Scheerder G, Sisask M, van der Feltz-Cornelis CM, Hegerl U, Schmidtke A. How to adjust media recommendations on reporting suicidal behavior to new media developments. Arch Suicide Res 2014; 18:156-69. [PMID: 24627947 DOI: 10.1080/13811118.2013.824833] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
This study examines the inclusion of preventive factors and new media developments in media recommendations on suicide reporting. Of the 193 member states of the United Nations screened for media recommendations, information was available for 74 countries. Similarities and differences in their contents were analyzed by cluster analysis. Results indicate that of these 74 countries, 38% have national suicide prevention programs, 38% have media recommendations, and 25% have press codes including suicide reporting. Less than 25% of the media recommendations advise against mentioning online forums, suicide notes, pacts, clusters, hotspots, details of the person, and positive consequences. No more than 15% refer to self-help groups, fictional and online reporting. We conclude that media recommendations need to be revised by adding these preventive factors and by including sections on new media reporting.
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Affiliation(s)
- J Maloney
- a University of Würzburg, Department of Psychiatry , Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy , Würzburg , Germany
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Sisask M, Värnik A. Media roles in suicide prevention: a systematic review. Int J Environ Res Public Health 2012; 9:123-38. [PMID: 22470283 PMCID: PMC3315075 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph9010123] [Citation(s) in RCA: 210] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/10/2011] [Revised: 12/15/2011] [Accepted: 12/30/2011] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
The aim of the current systematic review was to monitor and provide an overview of the research performed about the roles of media in suicide prevention in order to find out possible effects media reporting on suicidal behaviours might have on actual suicidality (completed suicides, attempted suicides, suicidal ideation). The systematic review was performed following the principles of the PRISMA statement and includes 56 articles. Most of the studies support the idea that media reporting and suicidality are associated. However, there is a risk of reporting bias. More research is available about how irresponsible media reports can provoke suicidal behaviours (the 'Werther effect') and less about protective effect media can have (the 'Papageno effect'). Strong modelling effect of media coverage on suicide is based on age and gender. Media reports are not representative of official suicide data and tend to exaggerate sensational suicides, for example dramatic and highly lethal suicide methods, which are rare in real life. Future studies have to encounter the challenges the global medium Internet will offer in terms of research methods, as it is difficult to define the circulation of news in the Internet either spatially or in time. However, online media can provide valuable innovative qualitative research material.
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Affiliation(s)
- Merike Sisask
- Central Behavior & Health Science, Estonian-Swedish Mental Health and Suicidology Institute (ERSI), 39 Õie, Tallinn 11615, Estonia;
- Institute of Social Work, Tallinn University, 25 Narva mnt, Tallinn 10120, Estonia
| | - Airi Värnik
- Central Behavior & Health Science, Estonian-Swedish Mental Health and Suicidology Institute (ERSI), 39 Õie, Tallinn 11615, Estonia;
- Institute of Social Work, Tallinn University, 25 Narva mnt, Tallinn 10120, Estonia
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