“I just didn’t want to be alive anymore” an examination of Meghan Makrle’s disclosure of suicidal ideation

Suicide and suicidal ideation pose serious public health concerns. In an interview in March of 2021, Meghan Markle disclosed experiencing suicidal ideation. Extant research suggests that stories of suicidal ideation that is successfully navigated (i.e., overcoming suicidal thoughts and crises) leads to a decrease in reader suicidality and an increase in hope, termed the Papageno effect (Niederkrothentaler et al., 2010). To investigate this, in this dissertation two studies were conducted. The first study examined exposure to the initial interview with Meghan Markle and subsequent effects of this interview. The second study experimentally tested exposure to different news frames about Meghan’s disclosure. Despite no significant differences in suicidality between the experimental and control groups in both studies, important findings emerged. Audience involvement processes—such as transportation, identification, and parasocial relationships (PSR)—were found to significantly reduce suicidality. These results suggest that while direct effects on suicidality may be absent, the involvement of audiences through these processes has a protective impact. Additionally, the findings highlight the current challenges in defining and operationalizing the Papageno effect in research. The dissertation emphasizes the need for future studies to incorporate audience involvement measures and provides practical implications for suicide prevention campaigns, particularly those utilizing narratives and storytelling. Overall, this work contributes to the understanding of media effects on mental health and offers guidance for enhancing the effectiveness of suicide prevention strategies.

Name thesis:degree_name

Ph.D.

Level thesis:degree_level

Dissertation

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Communication

Grantor

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Year dc:date

2024

Author dc:creator

• Schneider, Abbey Marie

Contributors dc:contributor

• Dixon, Travis L
• Tewksbury, David
• Kosenko, Kami A
• Hurley, Ryan J
• Bigman-Gailmore, Cabral
• Yang, JungHawn

• Suicide
• Media Effects

Statement dc:rights

• Copyright 2024 Abbey Schneider

Language dc:language

en, eng

Handle dc:identifier

https://hdl.handle.net/2142/125627

OAI record oai:identifier

https://www.ideals.illinois.edu/oai-pmh?verb=GetRecord&metadataPrefix=etdms&identifier=oai%3Awww.ideals.illinois.edu%3A2142%2F125627