Josie Rohach


Categorizations of Suicide Representation in Popular Film and Television

As suicide rates continue to rise in the United States and previous research has confirmed that media representations can lead to imitative suicidal behavior, examining the fictional representations of suicide and their potential consequences has become imperative in preventing a continued increase in the rate of suicide. Based on an analysis of nearly one hundred films and television programs that include at least one scene of a death by suicide or suicide attempt, this study distinguished five of the most frequently occurring stereotypes that concern suicide: The Suicidal Sweetie, The Unrequited Lover, The Gayngst-Induced Suicide, The Fallen Male, and The Escapist. Each stereotype is categorized by demographics, methods, and motivations and subsequently addressed individually to expose potential roles as suicidal representations that lead to imitative behavior or reinforce negative cultural stereotypes that lead to stigmatization. These distinct representations of suicide were found to uniquely reflect and reinforce pressures of dominant gender and sexuality norms that overarchingly contribute to conditions that likely foster suicidal ideations and actions in viewers.

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