RESOURCES
Research Summary:
This is a brief personal reflection on what I’ve discovered as editor and author of this site, as well as a brief summary what I’ve learned through my resources.
When researching this subject, I came across several surveys, studies, and works that seemed to point to the behavior exhibited on social media as a main cause for suicide ideation and eventual suicide. Social networking has become ingrained in society, so that even people that have a low depression and suicide risk become more prone to attempting suicide. The internet has the potential to impact “suicide ideation”, or suicidal thoughts and ideas. I think this may result from the “wall” the internet creates between people. It becomes easier to tell someone what you really think, without ever having to see the consequence of the action. According to multiple studies done all over the world, including Canadian Laura Eggertson’s piece "Social Media Embraces Suicide Prevention", Japanese H. Sueki’s study on "The Association of Suicide-Related Twitter use with Suicidal Behavior: A Cross Sectional Study of Young Internet Users in Japan", and South Korean Hong-HeeWon’s attempt at "Predicting National Suicide Numbers with Social Media Data." In all of these studies, higher use of social media is linked to higher suicide rates, social isolation, and negative interactions on the internet. I believe that the treatment of suicide in the media and poor mental health care contributes to the rising national and international suicide rates. In an attempt to put my research into practice, I have decided to work on a tumblr campaign that will have a positive impact on people experiencing suicide ideation and can potentially help them to find the information they need to prevent the taking of their own life. It isn’t just up to me though. Only by reaching out to the people that are dealing with these problems can we as a society begin fixing this.
Media and Videos
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For those who have never experienced or been affected by suicide, this is an excellent video that helps explain why people have such difficulties in dealing with their stress, anxiety, and depression. The way Mr. Henick discusses the emptiness and extreme isolation he felt as a teenager despite being surrounded by loved ones and teachers is a perfect way for friends and family to understand what is going on with their loved one. With more understanding and discussion on the subject of suicide, I hope to expound on Henick’s idea of change in labelling and treatment of suicidal individuals. By opening the discussion on suicide without prompting by a horrific case of suicide that becomes blown up by the media or taken over by social media, we as a society can avoid more pain and suffering caused by the suicides of young adults like Phoebe Prince and Megan Meier.
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A similar discussion like Mr. Henick’s TED Talk, this video also begins a discussion on suicide. Unlike Mr. Henick, Mr. Solomon opens the discussion in regards to a wider audience, claiming that depression is something that everyone struggles with at some time or another in their lives. He also transforms the subject into what feels like slam poetry, trying to make it more personal and relatable for people that have never experienced depression on a suicidal scale before. Solomon is actually right on the money. In fact, according to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, major depressive disorder is “the leading cause of disability in the U.S. for ages 15 to 44.3, affect(ing) approximately 14.8 million American adults, or about 6.7 percent of the U.S. population age 18 and older in a given year” (“Facts and Statistics”).
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An excerpt from a series of news clips that detail the multiple dangers on the internet including fraud and child predators, this short clip mentions two examples of what psychologists consider “celebrity suicides”. A celebrity suicide is a suicide that becomes blown up by the media and is referenced in a general way to describe a broad number or represent the suicide statistics. While certain cases do have unique aspects that can begin discussions about suicide, the way these stories are portrayed (ie. With a celebrity status) can cause serious damage to people experiencing similar thoughts or suicide ideation. Celebrity suicides are seen as ‘meaningful’ by these individuals and they tragically attempt to gain similar meaning in their own deaths. In this video, cyber bullying is blamed for the death of high schooler Phoebe Prince. In this case, the media may be on to something. According to research from the study on “A Preliminary Examination of the Relationship between Social Networking Interactions Internet Use, and Thwarted Belongingness”, individuals that had more negative interactions online felt more feelings of isolation on the internet.
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When you need help dealing or coping with depression and anxiety, this is the video for you. Author Noah Elkrief does an excellent job of discussing how to deal with the labels people give themselves when they are depressed. In a way that mirrors how labels like 'psycho', 'schizo', 'retard', and 'crazy' are seen as damaging to other people with mental illness, constantly being judged and labeled as 'depressive', 'sad', 'lazy', or even 'worthless' has an effect on someone with depression. Thanks to individuals like Mr. Elkrief, awareness for depression will hopefully create a more positive treatment of suicide and depression by society. Perhaps with more efforts like this, we will open new doors for the public discussion of depression, mental illness, suicide, anxiety, etc. in public discussion and hopefully lessen some of the issues created by media and social networking that can amplify suicide ideation.