What is the Werther effect?
The Werther effect is the rise in suicides that can follow widely publicised suicides or sensational reporting. Sociologist David Phillips named it in 1974 after Goethe’s 1774 novel *The Sorrows of Young Werther*, which was linked to reports of imitative deaths in Europe. Phillips found that U.S. suicides increased after front-page suicide stories.
- Named by
- David P. Phillips (1974)
- Named after
- Goethe’s Werther (1774)
- Mechanism
- Imitation via media and examples
- Opposite
- Papageno effect
The Papageno effect
Niederkrotenthaler et al. (2010) found that reports of people overcoming suicidal crises were associated with fewer subsequent suicides, a protective effect named after Papageno in Mozart’s *The Magic Flute*.
Safe reporting
WHO guidance recommends avoiding details of method and location, avoiding sensational headlines, not presenting suicide as a solution, and always including help-seeking information.
Getting help
If you are struggling, in the U.S. call or text 988; in Korea call 109; elsewhere contact your local crisis line.
Frequently asked questions
- What is the Werther effect?
- An increase in imitative suicides after publicised suicides or sensational coverage.
- What is the Papageno effect?
- The protective effect of stories about coping with and overcoming suicidal crises.
References
- Phillips, D. P. (1974). The influence of suggestion on suicide: Substantive and theoretical implications of the Werther effect. American Sociological Review, 39(3), 340–354.
- Niederkrotenthaler, T., Voracek, M., Herberth, A., Till, B., Strauss, M., Etzersdorfer, E., Eisenwort, B., & Sonneck, G. (2010). Role of media reports in completed and prevented suicide: Werther v. Papageno effects. British Journal of Psychiatry, 197(3), 234–243.
- World Health Organization. (2023). Preventing suicide: A resource for media professionals, 2023 update. WHO.