Suicide on YouTube:Factors engaging viewers to a selection of suicide-themed videos

Abstract

Visual social media platforms can function as both facilitators and intervenors of concerning behaviors. This study focused on one of the health concerns worldwide, a leading cause of death related to mental health—suicide—in the context of a dominant visual social media platform, YouTube. This study employed content analysis method to identify the factors predicting viewer responses to suicide-themed content from the perspectives of who’s, what’s, and how’s of suicide-themed videos. The results of the hierarchical multiple regression showed that the characteristics of content provider and content expression were more significant predictors of viewer engagement than were the characteristics of the message. These findings have implications for not only platform service providers but also diverse groups of individuals who participate in online discussions on suicide. YouTube has the potential to function as a locus for open discussion, education, collective coping, and even the diagnosis of suicidal ideation.