Robin Williams' suicide: a case study

Tohid, Hassaan

doi:10.1590/2237-6089-2015-0064

Cited by 4 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 22 publications

(14 reference statements)

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“…The suicide of Robin Williams, who died on 11 August 2014 in his Californian home, provides a recent example of a celebrity suicide that was widely reported (Tohid, 2016), and several studies have examined the extent to which the media coverage conformed to relevant guidelines. In particular, a study by Carmichael and Whitley (2019) observed only moderate adherence to guidelines by US newspapers, noting that 46% of the articles they analysed provided details of the suicide method that Williams used (hanging), 27% romanticised his death and only 11% pointed readers to sources of help.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Suicides in Australia following media reports of the death of Robin Williams

Pirkis

Currier

Too

et al. 2019

Aust N Z J Psychiatry

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Objective: This study assessed the extent to which local reporting of Robin Williams’ suicide (on 11 August 2014) was associated with suicide in Australia. It followed several studies in the United States which showed that there were significant increases in suicide following media reports of Williams’ death and that those media reports were less than optimal in terms of adherence to best-practice guidelines. In a previous study, we demonstrated that Australian media reports of Williams’ suicide were largely adherent with our Mindframe guidelines on responsible reporting of suicide, so we speculated that there would be no increase in suicide following the reporting of Williams’ suicide in Australia. Method: We extracted data on Australian suicides from the National Coroners Information System for the period 2001 to 2016. We conducted interrupted time series regression analyses to determine whether there were changes in suicides in the 5-month period immediately following Williams’ suicide. Results: Our hypothesis that there would be no increase in suicides in Australia following Williams’ highly publicised suicide was not supported. There was an 11% increase in suicides in the 5-month period following Williams’ death, largely accounted for by men aged 30–64 and by people who died by hanging (the method Williams used). Conclusion: It may be that Australians were exposed to reports that contravened safe reporting recommendations, particularly via overseas media or social media, and/or that some Australian reports may have had unhelpful overarching narratives, despite largely adhering to the Mindframe guidelines. The Mindframe guidelines constitute international best practice but consideration should be given to whether certain recommendations within them should be further reinforced and whether more nuanced information about how stories should be framed could be provided. Future revision and augmentation of the Mindframe guidelines should, as always, involve media professionals.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Suicides in Australia following media reports of the death of Robin Williams

Pirkis

Currier

Too

et al. 2019

Aust N Z J Psychiatry

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“…The literature is filled with treatises on famous composers (Constant, 2011), writers (Jamison, 1989), poets (Hankir & Zaman, 2015), singers (Yip et al, 2006), actors (Tohid, 2016), and film directors (Dieguez, Assal & Bogousslavsky, 2007) who were troubled by various psychiatric and/or neurological diseases, and how these affected their lives and works. Not surprisingly, the visual arts could not be an exception to that rule.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Neuroznanost i umjetnost

Tsamakis

Karakis

2022

AMHA

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The objective of this article is to highlight the bidirectional relationship between neuroscience and art in the life and times of the most preeminent sculptor in modern Greek history, Yannoulis Chalepas. Analysis of biographical sources and testimonies on the life and works of Yannoulis Chalepas was performed. Findings are discussed in relation to the neuropsyc-hiatric maladies that he faced in his lifespan and their impact on his art. Yannoulis Chalepas’ life and art are trichotomized in a charismatic, premorbid era (1851-1877), a prolonged, medieval, morbid period (1878 1917), and a transfigurative, post morbid era (1918-1938). The amalgamate of medical evidence suggests that Yannoulis Chalepas suffered from schizophrenia. That was reflected in his art through two distinct periods of artistic productivity and stylistic creativity. The bidirectional relationship between neuroscience and art in the history of humanity is also exemplified in the legacy of Yannoulis Chalepas. The borderland of artistic ingenuity with aberrant behavior, the misconceptions of neurocognitive disorders with psychosis along with their associated social stigma, the effect of artistic expression in the manifestation of psychiatric disease, as well as its healing and often transformative power are concepts that still tantalize equally scientists and artists around the globe.

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The Kevorkian Chapter: Physician-Assisted Death in You Don’t Know Jack (2010)

Rosenthal

2020

Healthcare Ethics on Film

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Robin Williams' suicide: a case study

Cited by 4 publications

References 22 publications

Suicides in Australia following media reports of the death of Robin Williams

Suicides in Australia following media reports of the death of Robin Williams

Neuroznanost i umjetnost

The Kevorkian Chapter: Physician-Assisted Death in You Don’t Know Jack (2010)

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