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Suicide is the leading cause of death among people between 14 and 35 years in China. The suicide rate of adolescents in China is 1.5 times higher than the world average, with 16.1% of Chinese adolescents ranged from 10-19 years reporting suicide ideation and 2.94% reporting suicide attempts in the last year. Among college students, 10.7% reported suicidal ideation, and 2.8% reported suicidal attempts. The suicide rate of the 14–35-year-old group in rural areas is twice that in cities.

Suicide stigma is a mark or stereotype associated with suicide. For example, people with suicidal ideation/behaviors are sometimes seen as attention-seeking or “crazy”. Suicide stigma leads to prejudice and discrimination and is a significant barrier to effective suicide prevention since such stigma hinders people’s help-seeking behaviors.

We studied how suicide stigma is communicatively constructed by examining the stories told by college students in China. Here are some of the main findings:

• Our participants portray those who attempt or die by suicide as “familiar strangers” through the practice of othering. Participants believe that those who have suicidal ideation/behaviors are fundamentally different from themselves in terms of personality and circumstances. People who attempt or die of suicide are usually described as irresponsible, fragile, impulsive, or attention-seeking.
• Taking one’s own life is mostly framed as a betrayal of one’s parents and family.
• Finally, subtle differences in the suicide stigma of people of different ages and gender were also revealed. Women’s suicides are less likely to be taken seriously.

Zou, W., Tang, L., & Bie, B. (2022) The stigmatization of suicide: A study of stories told by college students in China. Death Studies, 46(9): 2035-2045. https://doi.org/10.1080/07481187.2021.1958396 [Full Text]