Are youth suicide memorial sites on Facebook different from those for other sudden deaths?

Scourfield, Jonathan ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6218-8158, Evans, Rhiannon ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0239-6331, Colombo, Gualtoiero, Burrows, Daniel, Jacob, Nina, Williams, Matthew ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2566-6063 and Burnap, Pete ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0396-633X 2020. Are youth suicide memorial sites on Facebook different from those for other sudden deaths? Death Studies 44 (12) , pp. 793-801. 10.1080/07481187.2019.1614109

Preview

PDF - Published Version Available under License Creative Commons Attribution No Derivatives. Download (983kB) | Preview

Abstract

To explore possible distinctive features of online memorials for youth suicides, amid concerns about glorification, we compared public Facebook memorials for suicides and road traffic accident deaths, using Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count software. People who posted on memorial sites wrote at greater length about suicides, using longer words and more quotation marks. Words suggesting causation and achievement were more prevalent in suicide memorials. Thematic content for the two types of death was more similar than different. Suicide memorial posts had more tentative words, non-fluencies, and question marks, suggesting that people were struggling to make sense of these deaths.

Item Type:	Article
Date Type:	Publication
Status:	Published
Schools:	Centre for Trials Research (CNTRR) Computer Science & Informatics Medicine Social Sciences (Includes Criminology and Education)
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
ISSN:	0748-1187
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	4 April 2019
Date of Acceptance:	1 April 2019
Last Modified:	06 Nov 2023 21:10
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/121377

Citation Data

Cited 4 times in Scopus. View in Scopus. Powered By Scopus® Data

Actions (repository staff only)

Edit Item