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Media type:
E-Article
Title:
The Momo Challenge: measuring the extent to which YouTube portrays harmful and helpful depictions of a suicide game
Contributor:
Kobilke, Lara;
Markiewitz, Antonia
imprint:
Springer Science and Business Media LLC, 2021
Published in:SN Social Sciences
Language:
English
DOI:
10.1007/s43545-021-00065-1
ISSN:
2662-9283
Origination:
Footnote:
Description:
<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title><jats:p>Suicide is the second leading cause of death among adolescents (15 to 29 years), who are in a life stage of exceptional vulnerability and susceptibility to depictions of non-suicidal self-injury and suicide. Allegedly, the suicide game <jats:italic>Momo Challenge</jats:italic> used this vulnerability to demand their players to perform self-harming dares and, ultimately, commit suicide. This study gives insight into the content, engagement rates and community formation of Momo Challenge videos on YouTube. We combine a network analysis (<jats:italic>n</jats:italic> = 209) with a manual content analysis of the videos (<jats:italic>n</jats:italic> = 105; 50%). Results show that more than two thirds of the videos include some form of harmful depiction. In addition, videos with a higher extent of harmful depictions are more likely to be engaged with, e.g., through likes (<jats:italic>ρ</jats:italic> = 0.332, <jats:italic>p</jats:italic> < 0.001). We discuss how YouTube has responded to the challenge and which implications arise for practice and theory.</jats:p>