Hope via clicks: reaching people in crisis through websites

A new look at media impact

The central question is what kind of content can instill hope in people at risk of suicide and thus potentially trigger a so-called Papageno Effect, which is the opposite of the well-known Werther Effect, named after the protagonist of Goethe's novel The Sorrows of Young Werther. “Back then, as today, it was observed that suicide rates rose after sensational reports of suicides,” says Till. The Werther effect is well documented scientifically and is one of the foundations for the media recommendations on suicide reporting that were first published in Austria in 1987. “Journalists handled this surprisingly well at the time,” notes Till. Since then, Austria has been considered a pioneer: the recommendations have been incorporated into the press code, and the cooperation between the media and prevention experts is regarded as a model internationally.

The Papageno Effect, on the other hand, denotes the positive influence of media content. “When a person publicly describes how they sought help and what helped them in their crisis, it acts like a protective shield,” explains Till. “Such stories can mitigate suicidal thoughts.” The term is derived from Mozart's Magic Flute: the despairing bird-catcher Papageno intends to take his own life but is prevented from doing so at the last moment.

AI in suicide prevention

Today, artificial intelligence also has a role to play in suicide prevention. “We explored AI in another project, but got mixed results,” reports Till. When users sought help, the AI responded in an exemplary manner. Things became more difficult when the users pretended to be journalists reporting on a suicide. “Suicide methods were described in far too much detail, for example, which runs counter to all recommendations.” Although there was hardly any way to correct the model by means of feeding it information, Till still sees potential: “AI can be problematic, but it can also help, for example in training for how to handle conversational situations. It depends on how you use it.”

The research activities of scientists such as Benedikt Till and his colleague Thomas Niederkrotenthaler at the Medical University of Vienna are preparing the ground for effective digital suicide prevention. While it is still early days, Austria has taken a leading role internationally, not only in media ethics but also in terms of research. Ultimately, the crux is how reliable websites are and in what form they can offer effective help for those in distress. “There is only empirical research to tell us whether a particular design or narrative or both give hope,” says Till. The team will continue collecting data about the clicking and surfing behavior of users until the end of the project in spring 2027. The scientific findings can bring suicide prevention measures into the digital world and, ideally, directly into the dark world of those affected.

Participating in the study

All German-speaking internet users are invited to visit the suicide prevention website of the current project at https://suizid-praevention.info in order to get an idea of the design and content of the website. The researchers expressly encourage interested parties from various target groups (people with suicidal thoughts; people who are concerned about someone with suicidal thoughts; people who have lost someone to suicide or those who are interested in suicide prevention for other reasons) to take part in the survey.