Conversations about suicide on social media can be used as an early warning system to help prevent such tragedies, said researchers of a study conducted on Twitter.
Cyber bullying and suicides are not uncommon these days. It is also not uncommon for social networking site users to post updates regarding their life - good or bad, on these sites. Researchers from Brigham Young University examined tweets originating from all 50 states over a three month period and used their algorithm to search for direct discussion of suicide.
"With social media, kids sometimes say things that they aren't saying out loud to an adult or friend in person," said Christophe Giraud-Carrier, a BYU computer scientist and one of the study's seven authors.
They found 37,717 genuinely troubling tweets from 28,088 unique users located in different states. An accumulation of these tweets helped researchers report the suicidal rates of some states.
For example, in Alaska which has the highest suicidal rate, researchers found 61 suicidal tweets. In Texas, where the rate of suicide is slightly lower but the population is significantly higher, more than 3,000 Twitter users were flagged as at-risk cases. In Utah, the study found 195 Twitter users who may be at risk.
"Somebody ought to do something," Giraud-Carrier said. "How about using social media as a complement to what is already done for suicide prevention?"
Researchers of the study suggest that social media platforms can be used to detect early signs of suicidal thoughts and prevent them from happening. An earlier study found that more than 15 percent tweets have user location information on them. Hence, health departments of different states can use this information to locate people that send out at-risk tweets.
Brigham Young University researchers are planning on developing an application that can help teachers keep a track of students' posts. However, for this teachers would first need to seek permission from students or their guardians allowing them to receive post updates of the student in question. This application can help teachers build a connection with students and notify counsellors when a student posts something that is a cry for help.
"Suicide is preventable," said Carl Hanson, a BYU health scientist and study co-author. "Social media is one channel for monitoring those at risk for suicide and potentially doing something about it."
