Are Suicide Attempts Contagious in Young People?

Previous research on suicide has suggested contagion effects linking exposure to suicide thoughts and behaviors in one's social network with subsequent suicidal ideation and attempts.Among teens and young adults in a cohort study who did not have a prior suicide attempt, exposure to a suicide attempt within one's social network was associated with greater odds of subsequent suicide attempt onset.Of note, exposure to a suicide attempt in one's social network was not linked to suicidal ideation onset.

Knowing someone who had attempted suicide was associated with subsequent attempts in teens and young adults, a cohort study suggested.

Among people ages 13 to 22 who did not have a prior suicide attempt, exposure to a suicide attempt within one's social network was associated with greater odds of subsequent suicide attempt onset (OR 2.78, 95% CI 1.78-4.33, P<0.001), reported Kimberly Mitchell, PhD, of the University of New Hampshire in Durham, and Victoria Banyard, PhD, of Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey.

This association remained significant after adjusting for depressive symptoms (OR 2.43, 95% CI 1.51-3.91, P<0.001), they wrote in JAMA Network Open.

In recent years, rates of depression and anxiety have jumped in teens and young adults, as have rates of suicidal thoughts and behaviors.