Characterizing Use of the Internet and Social Media to Access Suicide-Related Content among Adolescents with Suicidal Ideation
- 1University of Rochester Medical Center
Abstract
BackgroundAdolescents frequently consult online resources regarding sensitive health topics, including suicide. Although content analyses demonstrate that online platforms contain both suicide-preventive and pro-suicide material, they rarely incorporate subjective data from adolescents at elevated suicide risk.
AimsThis exploratory study examined associations between reasons for seeking suicide-related information online and the digital media used to access such content among adolescents with suicidal ideation.
MethodOver one year, 131 adolescents aged 13 to 18 with current or past suicidal ideation were recruited from the Emergency Department of an urban pediatric hospital to complete a cross-sectional survey. Participants reported whether they had sought suicide-related information online, the type of information sought, and the online locations used. Mixed-effects regression models examined associations between reasons for online searches and digital media used.
ResultsOf 131 enrolled adolescents, 113 completed the survey; 69 (61.1%) reported ever seeking suicide-related information online. Searches were more often intended to assist with acting on suicidal thoughts than to reduce suicidal thoughts (63.7% vs. 55.1%). Social media were used for help-seeking searches slightly more often than professional health organization websites (42.1% vs. 31.6%). Among adolescents who used social media for their searches, discussion forums were significantly more likely to be used when seeking information to act on suicidal thoughts (OR=7.0, p=.02).
ConclusionThe majority of adolescents with suicidal ideation may seek out suicide-related content online, particularly to facilitate suicide planning. Social media may be used as frequently as professional mental health websites like 988 or The Trevor Project for suicide-related searches.
Related
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BibTeX
@misc{gansner2026characterizing,
title = {{Characterizing Use of the Internet and Social Media to Access Suicide-Related Content among Adolescents with Suicidal Ideation}},
author = {M. Gansner and P. Nikam and M. Adams and S. Ramrajesh and N. Huntley and W. Wang and M. Quadri and Z. Qayuum},
howpublished = {medRxiv},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.64898/2026.10.13.26365422},
url = {https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.10.13.26365422v1},
note = {CC BY-NC},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Characterizing Use of the Internet and Social Media to Access Suicide-Related Content among Adolescents with Suicidal Ideation
AU - M. Gansner
AU - P. Nikam
AU - M. Adams
AU - S. Ramrajesh
AU - N. Huntley
AU - W. Wang
AU - M. Quadri
AU - Z. Qayuum
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/13
PB - medRxiv
DO - 10.64898/2026.10.13.26365422
UR - https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.10.13.26365422v1
AB - BackgroundAdolescents frequently consult online resources regarding sensitive health topics, including suicide. Although content analyses demonstrate that online platforms contain both suicide-preventive and pro-suicide material, they rarely incorporate subjective data from adolescents at elevated suicide risk. AimsThis exploratory study examined associations between reasons for seeking suicide-related information online and the digital media used to access such content among adolescents with suicidal ideation. MethodOver one year, 131 adolescents aged 13 to 18 with current or past suicidal ideation were recruited from the Emergency Department of an urban pediatric hospital to complete a cross-sectional survey. Participants reported whether they had sought suicide-related information online, the type of information sought, and the online locations used. Mixed-effects regression models examined associations between reasons for online searches and digital media used. ResultsOf 131 enrolled adolescents, 113 completed the survey; 69 (61.1%) reported ever seeking suicide-related information online. Searches were more often intended to assist with acting on suicidal thoughts than to reduce suicidal thoughts (63.7% vs. 55.1%). Social media were used for help-seeking searches slightly more often than professional health organization websites (42.1% vs. 31.6%). Among adolescents who used social media for their searches, discussion forums were significantly more likely to be used when seeking information to act on suicidal thoughts (OR=7.0, p=.02). ConclusionThe majority of adolescents with suicidal ideation may seek out suicide-related content online, particularly to facilitate suicide planning. Social media may be used as frequently as professional mental health websites like 988 or The Trevor Project for suicide-related searches.
ER -