Background
The National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention Research Prioritization Task Force (RPTF) has created a prioritized national research agenda with the potential to rapidly and substantially reduce the suicide burden in the U.S. if fully funded and implemented.
Purpose
Viable, sustainable scientific research agendas addressing challenging public health issues such as suicide often need to incorporate perspectives from multiple stakeholder groups (e.g., researchers, policymakers, and other end-users of new knowledge) during an agenda-setting process. The Stakeholder Survey was a web-based survey conducted and analyzed in 2011–2012 to inform the goal-setting step in the RPTF agenda development process. The survey process, and the final list of “aspirational” research goals it produced, are presented here.
Methods
Using a modified Delphi process, diverse constituent groups generated and evaluated candidate research goals addressing pressing suicide prevention research needs.
Results
A total of 716 respondents representing 49 U.S. states and 18 foreign countries provided input that ultimately produced 12 overarching, research-informed aspirational goals aimed at reducing the U.S. suicide burden. Highest-rated goals addressed prevention of subsequent suicidal behavior after an initial attempt, strategies to retain patients in care, improved healthcare provider training, and generating care models that would ensure accessible treatment.
Conclusions
The Stakeholder Survey yielded widely valued research targets. Findings were diverse in focus, type, and current phase of research development but tended to prioritize practical solutions over theoretical advancement. Other complex public health problems requiring input from a broad-based constituency might benefit from web-based tools that facilitate such community input.
Introduction
Young people use social media to communicate about self-harm and suicide and this is associated with both potential risks and protective effects. The #chatsafe guidelines were originally developed in 2018 to equip young people to communicate safely online about suicide. They were shown to be safe, acceptable, and beneficial; however, they do not provide guidance on self-harm, and social media is constantly evolving. This study aimed to update the #chatsafe guidelines to reflect new evidence and current social media affordances, and to include guidance on self-harm.
Methods
A Delphi expert consensus study was conducted, comprising six stages: 1) A systematic search of peer-reviewed and grey literature; 2) A series of roundtables with key stakeholders including social media companies, policymakers, and young people; 3) Questionnaire development; 4) Expert panel formation; 5) Data collection and analysis; and 6) Guideline development.
Results
A total of 191 items were included in the new #chatsafe guidelines. These were organised into eight themes, which became the overarching sections of the guidelines: 1) General tips; 2) Creating self-harm and suicide content; 3) Consuming self-harm and suicide content; 4) Livestreams of self-harm and suicide acts; 4) Self-harm and suicide games, pacts, and hoaxes; 6) Self-harm and suicide communities; 7) Bereavement and communicating about someone who has died by suicide; and 8) Guidance for influencers.
Discussion
The new guidelines include updated and new information on online communication about self-harm, livestreams, games, pacts, and hoaxes, as well as guidance for influencers. They will be disseminated via a national social media campaign and supported by a series of adult-facing resources. Given the acceptability of the original guidelines and the ubiquitous use of social media by young people, it is hoped that the new guidelines will be a useful resource for young people and adults alike, both in Australia and worldwide.
This study examined data on acute (i.e., within 30 days) increases in suicides, help and information seeking, and service capacity after a celebrity suicide. Methods: Daily suicide data, call volume to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (NSPL), and visits to two suicide prevention Web sites before and after entertainer Robin Williams' death on August 11, 2014, were examined.
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