Facebook and Suicidal Behaviour: User Experiences of Suicide Notes, Live-Streaming, Grieving and Preventive Strategies—A Scoping Review

Sheikh Shoib, Miyuru Chandradasa, Mahsa Nahidi, Tan Weiling Amanda, Sonia Khan, Fahimeh Saeed, Sarya Swed, Marianna Mazza, Marco Di Nicola, Giovanni Martinotti, Massimo Di Giannantonio, Aishatu Yusha’u Armiya’u and Domenico De Berardis ()
Additional contact information
Sheikh Shoib: Department of Psychiatry, Jawahar Lal Nehru Memorial Hospital, Srinagar 190003, India
Miyuru Chandradasa: Department of Psychiatry, University of Kelaniya, Kelaniya 11300, Sri Lanka
Mahsa Nahidi: Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences Research Center, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad 9177948564, Iran
Tan Weiling Amanda: Alice Lee Centre for Nursing Studies, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117597, Singapore
Sonia Khan: Frontier Medical and Dental College, Abbottabad 22010, Pakistan
Fahimeh Saeed: Department of Psychiatry, Psychosis Research Center, University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences, Tehran 1985713834, Iran
Sarya Swed: Faculty of Medicine, Aleppo University, Aleppo 12212, Syria
Marianna Mazza: Department of Geriatrics, Neuroscience and Orthopedics, Institute of Psychiatry and Psychology, Fondazione Policlinico Universitario A. Gemelli, IRCCS, 00168 Rome, Italy
Marco Di Nicola: Department of Psychiatry, Fondazione Policlinico Universitario Agostino Gemelli, IRCCS, 00168 Rome, Italy
Giovanni Martinotti: Department of Neuroscience and Imaging, University “G. d’Annunzio”, 66100 Chieti, Italy
Massimo Di Giannantonio: Department of Neuroscience and Imaging, University “G. d’Annunzio”, 66100 Chieti, Italy
Aishatu Yusha’u Armiya’u: Department of Psychiatry, College of Medical Sciences, Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, Bauchi PMB 0248, Nigeria
Domenico De Berardis: Department of Mental Health, ASL 4, 64100 Teramo, Italy

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 20, 1-12

Abstract: Background: Facebook represents a new dimension for global information sharing. Suicidal behaviours and attempts are increasingly reported on Facebook. This scoping review explores the various aspects of suicidal behaviours associated with Facebook, discussing the challenges and preventive measures. Methods: PubMed, Google Scholar, and Scopus were searched for related articles published in English up to October 2021, using different combinations of “Facebook” and “suicide”. A group of experts comprising consultant psychiatrists screened the records and read the full-text articles to extract relevant data. Twenty-eight articles were chosen as relevant and included in the review under four selected themes. Results: Facebook impacts on suicidal behaviours in different aspects. Announcing suicides through sharing notes or personal information may lead to the prediction of suicide but be harmful to the online audience. Live-streaming videos of suicide is another aspect that questions Facebook’s ability to monitor shared contents that can negatively affect the audience. A positive impact is helping bereaved families to share feelings and seek support online, commemorating the lost person by sharing their photos. Moreover, it can provide real-world details of everyday user behaviours, which help predict suicide risk, primarily through novel machine-learning techniques, and provide early warning and valuable help to prevent it. It can also provide a timeline of the user’s activities and state of mind before suicide. Conclusions: Social media can detect suicidal tendencies, support those seeking help, comfort family and friends with their grief, and provide insights via timelining the users’ activities leading to their suicide. One of the limitations was the lack of quantitative studies evaluating preventative efforts on Facebook. The creators’ commitment and the users’ social responsibility will be required to create a mentally healthy Facebook environment.

Keywords: suicide attempt; behaviour; prevention; Facebook (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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