Aim to present suicide as a poor way of resolving a crisis. Avoid inadvertently implying that suicide is a rational means of dealing with a mental disorder or personal problems. The cause of an individual suicide is more complicated than a recent painful event such as the break-up of a relationship or the loss of a job. The vast majority of people do not become suicidal in response to such events and these events do not explain suicide. Back to top Graphic Details Research shows that exposure to suicide method through media reports can encourage vulnerable individuals to imitate it.
Clinicians believe the danger is greater if there is a detailed description of the method.
Research indicates that detailed descriptions or pictures of the location or site of the suicide encourage imitation. Pictures of the suicide victim may encourage young people in particular to see suicide as a way of getting fame and attention. Using young people on TV or in print media to tell the stories of their suicide attempts may encourage other young people to see suicide as a solution, or to seek attention in this way. Detailing the impact of suicide through descriptions and pictures of grieving relatives, teachers or classmates or community expressions of grief may encourage potential victims to see suicide as a way of getting attention, or as a form of retaliation against significant others. Over 90 percent of suicide victims have a significant, often undiagnosed and untreated psychiatric problem at the time of their death, and mood disorders and substance abuse are the two most common.