Social Media and Suicidal Behaviour - Study 1

NCT06255171 | Active Not Recruiting

• 1 other identifier: J3-3081-1
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 62
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

There is limited research investigating the correlation between suicidal behavior in the general population and online journalism reporting on suicide. Even less explored are the roles and characteristics of suicide-related news posts on social media platforms, along with reader comments, and their association with users' experiences. The primary objective of this randomized controlled trial is to experimentally examine the influence of these post features on user perceptions. Participants are expected to be university students or young adults. In line with this aim, the following research question has been posed: How do users of social media and forums perceive news posts about suicide on social media platforms? Participants will complete a screening battery of questionnaires. Those who will be eligible to participate will be divided into 1 experimental and 2 control groups. Firstly the participants will fill out a questionnaire regarding their current mood. Each group will read posts of a different theme, one of them will be suicidal behavior, deaths due to traffic accidents, and nature. They will be asked to observe and read 4 social media posts and their corresponding articles. After each article, they will answer a few questions on how they perceived these articles and how are they currently feeling. After the main part of the study, all groups of participants will be involved in a group debriefing conversation.

Conditions

Suicidal Behaviour

Keywords

social media; suicide; reporting on suicide; university students; impact of reporting; suicidal behaviour

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• The experience of a social media user when reading posts

  For the purposes of this study, questions were formulated about the experience of publication

  Approximately 1 minute after being presented each social media post

Secondary Outcomes (2)

• Self-rating of mood - Pleasant-Unpleasant Scale

  Before and approximately 1 minute after being presented each social media post

• Self-rating of mood - Arousal-Calm Mood Scale

  Before and approximately 1 minute after being presented each social media post

Study Arms (3)

Nature articles - control 1

OTHER

Participants will read posts and articles about nature.

Behavioral: Reading journalistic posts and articles on social media on nature

Death by suicide articles

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants will read posts and articles about death by suicide.

Behavioral: Reading journalistic posts and articles on social media on deaths by suicide

Articles about traffic-related deaths - control 2

OTHER

Participants will read posts and articles about traffic-related deaths.

Behavioral: Reading journalistic posts and articles on social media on traffic-related deaths

Interventions

Reading journalistic posts and articles on social media on nature BEHAVIORAL

Reading journalistic posts and articles, published on social media, regarding nature.

Nature articles - control 1

Reading journalistic posts and articles on social media on deaths by suicide BEHAVIORAL

Reading journalistic posts and articles, published on social media, regarding deaths by suicide.

Death by suicide articles

Reading journalistic posts and articles on social media on traffic-related deaths BEHAVIORAL

Reading journalistic posts and articles, published on social media, regarding traffic-related deaths

Articles about traffic-related deaths - control 2

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years - 40 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64)

You may qualify if:

• over the age of 18
• providing an informed consent for participation in the study
• not exceeding the limit values on any of the questionnaires of the screening battery

You may not qualify if:

• under the age of 18
• not providing an informed consent for participation in the study
• exceeding the limit values on at least one questionnaire of the screening battery

Sponsors & Collaborators

• University of Primorska: lead
• Slovenian Research Agency: collaborator

Study Sites (1)

University of Primorska

Koper, 6000, Slovenia

Location

Related Links

• Project description in Sicris database (en)
• Opis projekta v bazi Sicris (slo)

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Suicide

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Self-Injurious Behavior; Behavioral Symptoms; Behavior

Study Officials

• Diego De Leo

  University of Primorska

  STUDY DIRECTOR

• Vita Poštuvan

  University of Primorska

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: SINGLE
• Who Masked: PARTICIPANT
• Masking Details: Participants will know that they are allocated to one of 3 arms, but will not know if the arm is a control group or experimental. After the main part of the study, all groups of participants will be involved in a group debriefing conversation, providing an opportunity for feedback from both the study's facilitators and participants. It will facilitate clarification of conditions (experimental or control group) and provide a platform for discussing participants' feelings, potential dilemmas, questions, etc.
• Purpose: PREVENTION
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Model Details: Participants will be allocated to one of 3 arms, one of which will be an experimental group and 2 will be control groups.

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: January 17, 2024
• First Posted: February 13, 2024
• Study Start: December 1, 2023
• Primary Completion: August 12, 2024
• Study Completion: October 1, 2025
• Last Updated: December 19, 2024

Record last verified: 2024-12

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

SL (1)