In 2022, we sadly witnessed a distressing and record-breaking 514 school children taking their own lives, as reported in a government white paper. This troubling statistic raised concerns about the potential influence of media coverage on a celebrity’s suicide, contributing to the alarming rise. The figure marked an unfortunate milestone for students aged 6 to 18, surpassing all previous records since the inception of the survey in 1980, notably exceeding the 2020 record of 499. The Ministry of Welfare emphasized the urgent need to address the complex issues surrounding child suicides, including bullying and the quality of relationships between students and their teachers. These concerns were prominently featured in the ministry’s suicide-prevention white paper, which received Cabinet approval on October 20.
The report also underscored the concept of the “copycat suicide,” which denotes an increase in suicide rates following media reports of a well-known person’s suicide. The white paper postulated that media coverage of a TV celebrity’s suicide in May 2022 may have triggered a “copy-cat” phenomenon in the subsequent weeks. In response, the ministry called for responsible and considerate reporting by the media regarding suicide incidents, even issuing warnings to some outlets that dispatched reporters and camera crews to the residence of the deceased celebrity. The World Health Organization’s suicide-prevention guidelines advocate that the media abstain from sensational language, avoid disclosing specific locations, and refrain from detailing the methods used when reporting on celebrity suicides.
According to the ministry’s white paper, Japan witnessed a grim total of 21,881 suicides in 2022, marking a troubling increase of 874 cases, or 4.2 percent, compared to the previous year. This was the first rise in two years. Males experienced an increase in suicides for the first time in 13 years, while females saw their figures rise for the third consecutive year. The suicide rate per 100,000 individuals had been on the rise across various age groups since 2020, particularly affecting those in their 20s, 40s, and 50s. Among those who took their own lives, 11,775 individuals, constituting 53.8 percent of the total, were unemployed, in contrast to 8,576 people (39.2 percent) who were employed. Health issues were the primary cause of suicide, accounting for 12,774 cases (45.1 percent), while family-related problems were a contributing factor in 4,775 deaths (16.8 percent). Financial distress played a role in 4,697 suicides (16.6 percent).