Who identifies with suicidal film characters? Determinants of identification with suicidal protagonists of drama films.

BACKGROUND: Identification with a media character is an influential factor for the effects of a media product on the recipient, but still very little is known about this cognitive process. This study investigated to what extent identification of a recipient with the suicidal protagonist of a film drama is influenced by the similarity between them in terms of sex, age, and education as well as by the viewer's empathy and suicidality. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Sixty adults were assigned randomly to one of two film groups. Both groups watched a drama that concluded with the tragic suicide of the protagonist. Identification, empathy, suicidality, as well as socio-demographic data were measured by questionnaires that were applied before and after the movie screening. RESULTS: Results indicated that identification was not associated with socio-demographic similarity or the viewer's suicidality. However, the greater the subjects' empathy was, the more they identified with the protagonist in one of the two films. CONCLUSIONS: This investigation provides evidence that challenges the common assumption that identification with a film character is automatically generated when viewer and protagonist are similar in terms of sex, age, education or attitude.

Personal suicidality in reception and identification with suicidal film characters.

The authors investigated the impact of suicidality on identity work during film exposure. Adults with low suicidality (n = 150) watched either It's My Party or The Fire Within, censored versions of these films not depicting the suicide, or the control film that concluded with a non-suicidal death. Baseline suicidality was measured with questionnaires before the movie. Identity work and identification with the protagonist were measured after the movie. Suicidality was directly associated with identity work during film dramas depicting suicide methods. The reception of suicide-related media content seems to partially depend on personal suicidality. Potential implications for suicide prevention are discussed.

Suicide in films: the impact of suicide portrayals on nonsuicidal viewers' well-being and the effectiveness of censorship.

The effects of suicide films on recipients' emotional and mental state, as well as the influence of censorship, was studied. Nonsuicidal subjects watched the original or a censored version of a suicide film or a drama without suicide. Data were collected by questionnaires. The viewing led to a deterioration of mood and an increase in inner tension and depression scores, but also to a rise in self-esteem and life satisfaction and to a drop in suicidality. There were no relevant differences between the film groups. The more a subject identified with the protagonist, the greater were the negative effects.