Information and Communication Technology Use in Suicide Prevention: Scoping Review

Area of Science:

• Digital Health
• Public Health
• Mental Health Technology

Background:

• Information and communication technology (ICT) has rapidly advanced in suicide prevention over the last decade.
• Despite ICT's significant role, research on optimal practices lags behind technological progress.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore existing literature on ICT applications in suicide prevention.
• To identify the most effective and promising ICT-based suicide prevention strategies.

Main Methods:

• A scoping review of literature published between 2013 and 2018.
• Searches conducted across PubMed, PsycINFO, Sociological Abstracts, and IEEE Xplore databases.
• Utilized the World Health Organization's suicide prevention model (universal, selective, indicated).

Main Results:

• 115 studies were selected from 3848 identified articles.
• A significant number of studies focused on ICT for selective (53) and indicated (52) suicide prevention.
• Fewer studies (10) addressed ICT in universal suicide prevention.

Conclusions:

• ICT is crucial for suicide prevention, with numerous promising interventions identified.
• Further large-scale studies are essential to validate the effectiveness of these ICT programs.
• Development and implementation of safety and ethical guidelines for ICT interventions are recommended.