Exposure to, and searching for, information about suicide and self-harm on the Internet: Prevalence and predictors in a population based cohort of young adults

Abstract

BackgroundThere is concern over the potential impact of the Internet on self-harm and suicidal behaviour, particularly in young people. However, little is known about the prevalence and patterns of suicide/self-harm related Internet use in the general population.MethodsCross sectional study of 3946 of the 8525 participants in the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) who were sent a self-report questionnaire including questions on suicide/self-harm related Internet use and self-harm history at age 21 years.ResultsSuicide/self-harm related Internet use was reported by 22.5% (886/3946) of participants; 11.9% (470/3946) had come across sites/chatrooms discussing self-harm or suicide, 8.2% (323/3946) had searched for information about self-harm, 7.5% (296/3946) had searched for information about suicide and 9.1% (357/3946) had used the Internet to discuss self-harm or suicidal feelings. Suicide/self-harm related Internet use was particularly prevalent amongst those who had harmed with suicidal intent (70%, 174/248), and was strongly associated with the presence of suicidal thoughts, suicidal plans, and history of self-harm. Sites offering help, advice, or support were accessed by a larger proportion of the sample (8.2%, 323/3946) than sites offering information on how to hurt or kill yourself (3.1%, 123/3946). Most individuals (81%) who had accessed these potentially harmful sites had also accessed help sites.Limitations(i) There were differences between questionnaire responders and non-responders which could lead to selection bias and (ii) the data were cross-sectional, and we cannot conclude that associations are causal.ConclusionsSuicide/self-harm related Internet use is common amongst young adults, particularly amongst those with suicidal thoughts and behaviour. Both harmful and helpful sites were accessed, highlighting that the Internet presents potential risks but also offers opportunities for suicide prevention.

Annual Research Review: Suicide among youth – epidemiology, (potential) etiology, and treatment

“…Specific countries have taken steps to legally ban or block websites discussing practical aspects of suicide (Biddle, Donovan, Hawton, Kapur, & Gunnell, 2008). An additional consideration is that positive effects of the Internet have been documented, including the offering of help and social support (Mars et al, 2015). This area of research is still emerging and requires greater and more rigorous study.…”

Measuring the quality of scientific references in Wikipedia: an analysis of more than 115M citations to over 800,000 scientific articles

“…Consider the Wikipedia article "Suicide and Internet" which features the following statement, "A survey has found that suicide-risk individuals who went online for suicide-related purposes, compared with online users who did not, reported greater suicide-risk symptoms, were less likely to seek help and perceived less social support," highlighting a report by Harris, McLean, and Sheffield [10] . As identified by scite [11] , this report was later contradicted by a subsequent study finding that suicide-related Internet use individuals were more likely to seek help [12] (Figure 3). Providing contextual citation information for this Wikipedia article could influence behavioral choices that have potentially life or death consequences for a large population of people.…”

Prevention Strategies and Interventions for Internet Use Disorders Due to Addictive Behaviors Based on an Integrative Conceptual Model

“…Harmful content such as suicide coaching is abundant on the Internet [43]. Access to suicide promotion or self-harm websites is widespread [44]. Moreover, susceptible consumers may eventually become content "creators," posting their own self-mutilation videos or images.…”