Revisiting the Werther Effect in the 21st Century: Bullying and Suicidality Among Adolescents Who Watched 13 Reasons Why

Abstract

Unlike most leading causes of death in the United States, suicide rates have not declined during the past 50 years.¹ Among young people the situation is even more dramatic, because suicide rates are rising,² and suicide is now the second cause of death in 15- to 29-year-olds globally.³ It has been suggested that descriptions of suicide in the media might affect behavior and that the young might be more vulnerable to this effect.⁴.