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Media effects on suicide methods: A case study on Hong Kong 1998-2005
Qijin Cheng1, Feng Chen2, Paul S F Yip1,3
1Hong Kong Jockey Club Centre for Suicide Research and Prevention, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR.
Plos One
|April 14, 2017
Summary
Media reports on suicide methods, including new ones like charcoal burning (CB) suicide, can increase similar suicides. Adverse socio-economic conditions amplify these media effects, impacting both new and conventional suicide methods.
Area of Science:
- Public Health
- Sociology
- Media Studies
Background:
- Previous research indicates media reports of new suicide methods increase suicides by that method.
- This effect may not extend to conventional methods unless a celebrity is involved.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate media effects on new (charcoal burning, CB) and non-new suicide methods in Hong Kong from 1998-2005.
- To analyze how CB suicides competed with non-CB methods in media coverage and impact, considering socio-economic factors.
Main Methods:
- A self- and mutual- exciting process model was employed.
- The model adjusted for divorce rate, unemployment rate, and property price index.
- Analysis was conducted across different stages: onset, peak, and post-peak.
Main Results:
- Comparable copycat effects were observed for both CB and non-CB suicide news.
- A suppressing effect of non-CB suicide news on CB suicides occurred during the onset stage.
- CB suicides showed a significant self-excitation effect, and adverse socio-economic factors (higher divorce rate, lower property prices) correlated with increased suicides and related news.
Conclusions:
- The emergence of CB suicide did not reduce media coverage of non-CB methods in Hong Kong.
- Media effects on suicide were not confined to new methods or celebrity involvement.
- Adverse socio-economic conditions exacerbated media-fueled suicide incidents.