The impact of suicide reporting may not be restricted to harmful effects; rather, coverage of positive coping in adverse circumstances, as covered in media items about suicidal ideation, may have protective effects.
Suicide characteristics in the media are not representative of the population. The identified discrepancies provide a basis for tailor-made education of mass media professionals.
The effects of suicide films on recipients' emotional and mental state, as well as the influence of censorship, was studied. Nonsuicidal subjects watched the original or a censored version of a suicide film or a drama without suicide. Data were collected by questionnaires. The viewing led to a deterioration of mood and an increase in inner tension and depression scores, but also to a rise in self-esteem and life satisfaction and to a drop in suicidality. There were no relevant differences between the film groups. The more a subject identified with the protagonist, the greater were the negative effects.
The authors investigated the impact of suicidality on identity work during film exposure. Adults with low suicidality (n = 150) watched either It's My Party or The Fire Within, censored versions of these films not depicting the suicide, or the control film that concluded with a non-suicidal death. Baseline suicidality was measured with questionnaires before the movie. Identity work and identification with the protagonist were measured after the movie. Suicidality was directly associated with identity work during film dramas depicting suicide methods. The reception of suicide-related media content seems to partially depend on personal suicidality. Potential implications for suicide prevention are discussed.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.