Social Media and Content Promoting Suicide

Question: What do we know about social media and pro-suicide content? Can it lead to interpersonal violence? What can we do to keep kids and teens safe?

Answer: We appreciate this question. Promotion of suicide on social media can show up on social media in a variety of ways. It can be seen in content from personal accounts, such as shared tips related to suicide, or in online communities engaging in self-harm behaviors. In a previous study, 59% of youth ages 14-24 shared that they were exposed to suicide related information online with 25% of this information coming from social networking sites.  

Impact of exposure

While this content exists, exposure can lead to different outcomes for adolescent mental health due to the variability in types of suicide content. In the study mentioned above, despite a majority of teens reporting that they were exposed to suicide-related information online, that exposure was not related to any changes in suicide ideation or plans to attempt suicide.  
 
Extensive research on how the media reports on suicide, however, has found that the way suicides are reported can make a difference in whether there are increases in suicides. Articles that included at least one element “related to survival and mastery,” such as alternatives to suicide, community resource information for suicidal ideation, or messages of hope, led to a decrease in suicides over time. Articles that described a suicidal event, including the methods used, were associated with an increase in suicides. The implementation of professional guidelines for media reporting that include protective content, messages of hope, or solutions to a suicidal crisis has been an important effort towards preventing these outcomes, but the lack of regulation over social media platforms in reporting could pose similar risks for adolescents. 

Can social media help?

Research has found that many teens experiencing suicidality seek help on the internet. Features like “Close Friends” on Instagram, which allows users to only share content with close friends of their choosing, offer the possibility for social media to facilitate greater online and offline support-seeking. Individuals who used this feature often were found to be more willing to seek help from others offline, which was also associated with a reduced risk of suicidality. 
 
Further, many health organizations have a presence online, including the National Alliance for Mental Illness (NAMI) and the American Academy of Pediatrics. These organizations often share health-promoting material, including content inspiring positive mental health and well-being, on social media.   
 
Social media can also serve as a tool for early identification of suicidality thanks to developments in data mining technology, artificial intelligence, and machine learning algorithms. Ongoing research validating the accuracy of these AI models in predicting suicide risk, in addition to ethical considerations related to privacy and consent, is vital to ensure these methods are used responsibly and effectively in suicide prevention efforts. 

What parents and caregivers can do

Although parents cannot always prevent their child from seeing this content, there are ways to help youth address this type of media in a healthy way and reduce the risk of a harmful outcome. 
 
Here are a few tips you can take to combat this kind of information with your child or youth in your life.  

1. Focus on building a safe, stable relationship between you and your child and showing your child love. 
2. Encourage youth to come to you with concerns about potentially harmful content and concerns that someone they know may be experiencing suicidal thoughts or behaviors. Know the risk factors and warning signs for suicide. Talk about the content that you see on social media, including mental health and suicide. 
3. Help your child take control over what they see on social media to have a more positive experience by intentionally following accounts with positive content and unfollowing, blocking, and reporting content that they don’t want to see or that makes them feel sad or uncomfortable. If you are unsure of how to make changes to the settings on social media platforms, the Center’s Glossary of Digital Media Platforms can help.

What clinicians, educators, and other adults can do 

• Make resources easily available. Clinicians, educators, and parents can place resources in places where teens are likely to see them. Whether it is a patient visit, casual conversation or signage in classrooms or the home, you can share resources related to suicide and self-harm, including:
  • 988 National Suicide and Crisis Line
  • Crisis Text Line 
  • The Trevor Project (for LGBTQ+ youth specifically)
• Clinicians and other adults can help keep youth safe by knowing the warning signs of suicide. The Suicide Prevention Resource Center has a tipsheet for clinicians and a tipsheet for family members and community members. 
  • If adults notice warning signs, they can check in with youth by expressing concern, asking them directly if they are thinking about suicide, and connecting them with resources.  
• The AAP Blueprint for Youth Suicide Prevention is an evidence-based resource for clinicians and educators that describes how to identify and support youth at risk for suicide in clinical and community settings.

References 

• Belfort, E., Mezzacappa, E., & Ginnis, K. (2012). Similarities and Differences Among Adolescents Who Communicate Suicidality to Others via Electronic Versus other Means: A Pilot Study. Adolescent Psychiatry, 2, 258–262.   
• Bell, V. (2009). Online information, extreme communities and Internet therapy: Is the Internet good for our mental health? Journal of Mental Health, 16, 445–457.  
• Cash, S. J., Thelwall, M., Peck, S. N., Ferrell, J. Z., & Bridge, J. A. (2013). Adolescent suicide statements on MySpace. Cyberpsychology, Behavior and Social Networking, 16(3), 166–174.  
• Chen, S. S., Lam, T. P., Lam, K. F., Lo, T. L., Chao, D. V. K., Mak, K. Y., Lam, E. W. W., Tang, W. S., Chan, H. Y., & Yip, P. S. F. (2022). The use of close friends on Instagram, help-seeking willingness, and suicidality among Hong Kong youth: Exploratory sequential mixed methods study. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 24(10), 1–17.  
• Dunlop, S. M., More, E., & Romer, D. (2011). Where do youth learn about suicides on the Internet, and what influence does this have on suicidal ideation? Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 52(10), 1073–1080.  
• Fahey, R. A., Matsubayashi, T., & Ueda, M. (2018). Tracking the Werther Effect on social media: Emotional responses to prominent suicide deaths on Twitter and subsequent increases in suicide. Social Science & Medicine, 219, 19–29.  
• Fu, K., Cheng, Q., Wong, P. W. C., & Yip, P. S. F. (2013). Responses to a self-presented suicide attempt in social media: A social network analysis. Crisis: The Journal of Crisis Intervention and Suicide Prevention, 34(6), 406–412.  
• Harmer, B., Lee, S., Rizvi, A., & Saadabadi, A. (2024). Suicidal Ideation. In StatPearls. StatPearls Publishing.  
• Hawley, L. L., Niederkrotenthaler, T., Zaheer, R., Schaffer, A., Redelmeier, D. A., Levitt, A. J., Sareen, J., Pirkis, J., & Sinyor, M. (2023). Is the narrative the message? The relationship between suicide-related narratives in media reports and subsequent suicides. Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, 57(5), 758–766.  
• Intachomphoo, C. (2018). SOCIAL MEDIA AND YOUTH SUICIDE: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW. Research Papers, 13.   
• Mesch, G. S. (2009). Parental mediation, online activities, and cyberbullying. Cyberpsychology & Behavior: The Impact of the Internet, Multimedia and Virtual Reality on Behavior and Society, 12(4), 387–393.  
• Osman, A., Bagge, C. L., Gutierrez, P. M., Konick, L. C., Kopper, B. A., & Barrios, F. X. (2001). The Suicidal Behaviors Questionnaire-Revised (SBQ-R): validation with clinical and nonclinical samples. Assessment, 8(4), 443–454.   
• Reporting on Suicide. (2020). Recommendations for responsible reporting on suicide. SAVE. Retrieved June 6, 2025.  
• Ruder, T. D., Hatch, G. M., Ampanozi, G., Thali, M. J., & Fischer, N. (2011). Suicide Announcement on Facebook. Crisis, 32(5), 280–282.  
• Sinyor, M., Hartman, M., Zaheer, R., Williams, M., Pirkis, J., Heisel, M. J., Schaffer, A., Redelmeier, D. A., Cheung, A. H., Kiss, A., & Niederkrotenthaler, T. (2023). Differences in Suicide-Related Twitter Content According to User Influence. Crisis, 44(4), 292–299.  
• Sinyor, M., Schaffer, A., Heisel, M. J., Picard, A., Adamson, G., Cheung, C. P., Katz, L. Y., Jetly, R., & Sareen, J. (2018). Media guidelines for reporting on suicide: 2017 update of the Canadian Psychiatric Association policy paper. The Canadian Journal of Psychiatry / La Revue Canadienne de Psychiatrie, 63(3), 182–196.  
• Swedo, E. A., Beauregard, J. L., de Fijter, S., Werhan, L., Norris, K., Montgomery, M. P., Rose, E. B., David-Ferdon, C., Massetti, G. M., Hillis, S. D., & Sumner, S. A. (2021). Associations Between Social Media and Suicidal Behaviors During a Youth Suicide Cluster in Ohio. Journal of Adolescent Health, 68(2), 308–316.  
• Ueda, M., Mori, K., Matsubayashi, T., & Sawada, Y. (2017). Tweeting celebrity suicides: Users’ reaction to prominent suicide deaths on Twitter and subsequent increases in actual suicides. Social Science & Medicine, 189, 158–166.  
   

Age: 10-17 

Topics: Social media, adolescents, suicide, interpersonal violence, safety 

Role: Other, Advocate