Report: Suicides in movies tripled

PHILADELPHIA (AP) ― A movie analysis shows depictions of explicit and graphic suicides tripled from 1950 to 2006.

An analysis by Pennsylvania’s Annenberg Public Policy Center of 855 top box office films also says there’s no difference between PG-13- and R-rated films in the most explicit portrayals of suicide.

The study was released Tuesday. It’s published in the August issue of Archives of Suicide Research.

Researchers looked at suicidal behavior explicitness in the top 30 U.S. movies for each year. Lead author Patrick Jamieson says the researchers can’t establish a definite link but the tripling of U.S. teen suicides since 1960 has coincided with the increase in movie suicide portrayals.

He also says exposure to movie suicides has been found to correlate with thinking there is no effective treatment for mental health problems.