Monday, June 05 | Cause Connected, Human Services, Thought Leadership
In the last few months, there has been a lot of conversations about teen suicide, primarily driven by a new Netflix series, 13 Reasons Why. Experts have both praised the series for providing a focal point for discussing teen suicide and condemned it for glamorizing self-destruction. There are a lot of resources readily available (including below) that guide conversations about suicide, so I’m going to take a different angle in this post.
The core concern about this series is whether impressionable minds, especially adolescents and young adults, will identify with the series’ protagonist such that they may try to emulate her behavior and attempt suicide themselves. This “copycat” behavior is more formally known as suicide contagion, and in this blog, we will discuss what the scientific literature says about whether suicide contagion exists and whether it represents a real risk or not.
In a general sense, people, including trained therapists, often feel uncomfortable talking openly about suicide to someone who they suspect is having such thoughts. Aside from the obvious awkwardness of the topic, people are afraid that broaching the topic of suicide with someone will “plant the seed” of self-destruction as though the person never considered it. “I don’t want to give them any ideas” is often heard from laypeople and therapists alike. This type of thinking is unfortunate because the exact opposite is true – that someone considering suicide will usually be relieved that they can finally discuss their feelings openly. But more to the current point, this concern about “giving them the idea” is an individualized version of fear of suicide contagion.
In a larger sociological context, suicide contagion is very real. When real-life celebrities kill themselves, copycat suicides can increase. For many years, the prevailing wisdom was that this would occur anyway, but recent research has shown that the media can have a significant impact on the rates of suicide – in both directions.
When Marilyn Monroe died in 1962 and suicide was the presumptive cause of death, suicide rates jumped by approximately 12 percent. In 1994, Nirvana rock star Kurt Cobain committed suicide in Seattle. Concerned about the possibility of copycat suicide attempts, the community made a concerted attempt to impact this phenomenon. Newly developed suicide reporting guidelines for journalists were used in the media. These guidelines recommended that news articles be accompanied by suicide help numbers and suicide prevention resources. The result was twofold: an actual decrease in the number of suicides compared to previous and subsequent years and an increase in calls to suicide hotlines and crisis resources. A similar phenomenon occurred in 2014 following comedian Robin Williams’ death when the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline saw a doubling in the number of calls received.
So, in general, there does appear to be a relationship between celebrity deaths in copycat suicide attempts that is directly related to how much media coverage is present. But this is a result of real people taking their lives. What does the data show about fictional representations of suicide?
The evidence for suicide contagion following fictional events is compelling but not unequivocal. Studies that track suicide contagion following fictional representations of suicide have consistently found increases in suicide attempts. For example, a 1999 study found an increase of 17 percent and 9 percent in rates of copycat overdoses in the first and second weeks following a self-poisoning depicted in a British drama.
The reason the study is noteworthy is that the protagonist used ethylene glycol or antifreeze as the suicide agent. Antifreeze is not a commonly used method for overdosing, and as a result tracking these copycats become much easier. Some researchers have discounted the suggested relationship between fictional suicides and copycats, often on methodological grounds but the majority of evidence seems to support that the relationship is real.
Contributing to the contagion effect is the fact that children who know a friend or family member who has attempted suicide are three times more likely to attempt suicide than those who do not know such a person. In the 1970’s the prevailing knowledge suggested that suicide touched the lives of six other people, usually family members. Today, that number is closer to 135 and about one-third will be significantly affected by the event.
There is evidence that fictional representations of suicide are increasing, especially in film. From the 1900s through the 1950s the percent of movies that showed suicide or suicide attempts was trending downwards towards approximately 2 percent. But that changed in the 1960s. From the 1960s through the 1990s, the numbers of movies showing suicide attempts begin approaching 4 percent. But in recent decades, nearly one in 10 movies shows some depiction of suicide and those are largely skewed primarily towards characters under 25 years old.
What can we take away about suicide contagion?
Resources for Families
Mental Health First Aid Training
13 Reasons Why Talking Points. Jed Foundation
Teachable Moment Using “13 Reasons Why” to Initiate a Helpful Conversation About Suicide Prevention and Mental Health (Webinar). American Foundation for Suicide Prevention
Risk Factors and Warning Signs. American Foundation for Suicide Prevention 2017
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline
13 Reasons Why – Resources Dequincy Lezine May 5, 2017
Resources for Journalists
Recommendations for Journalists for Reporting on Suicide. American Foundation for Suicide Prevention Jan 2016
Suicide Contagion and the Reporting of Suicide: Recommendations from a National Workshop CDC April 1994
Monday, September 18 | Thought Leadership,Human Services,Care Coordination,Cause Connected,Legislative/Policy,Value-based Care
The opioid crisis is one of the most serious healthcare issues in our nation today. But there is hope. We believe there are three strategies your organization can leverage to combat opioid addiction and overdose: integrated care, policy and technology. This blog outlines some examples of all three and lists helpful resources your organization can use.
MoreThursday, September 14 | Thought Leadership,Human Services,Netsmart in the Community
By understanding mental health and suicide go hand-in-hand we can take the first step in reducing suicide risk and help heal our families, friends and loved-ones heal and grow forward as a community.
MoreTuesday, August 29 | Thought Leadership,Human Services,Partnerships and Collaboration
If the past few years has taught us anything, it is that consumers of healthcare want to access care their way. We live in a digital world which is impacting how we deliver care. Netsmart is committed to meeting the new and varied needs of providers by developing solutions that meet them where they are. The same is true for consumers. Having had a taste of virtual services, many consumers will want to continue virtual care and prefer much broader digital experiences. At Netsmart, we call this focus on the user experience "extreme usability."
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