GOTHS AND SELF-INJURIOUS BEHAVIOR Another goth study recently appeared on the net causing a buzz in most of the on-line gothic communities. What follows is a summary of the study that was originally published in a British Medical Journal, and a brief excerpt from one on-line discussion concerning it. The study was designed to investigate the “prevalence of deliberate self harm and attempted suicide within contemporary Goth youth subculture.” http://bmj.bmjjournals.com/cgi/content/abstract/bmj.38790.495544.7Cv1 Objective: Design: Setting: Participants: Main Outcome Measures: Results: Conclusions: The above data represents the basics but there was some interesting comment and interpretation. Med Page Today, for example (http://www.medpagetoday.com/Pediatrics/Parenting/tb/3098) had this to say: Primary Source: Source Reference: “This study did not determine whether Goth culture leads to self-destructive behavior or whether adolescents with those tendencies gravitate to Goth... The researchers suggested that rather than posing a risk, Goth culture may offer young people valuable social and emotional support from their peers.” Med Page went on to define goth as “a sub-genre of punk culture characterized by "a dark and sinister aesthetic, with aficionados conspicuous by their range of distinctive clothing and makeup and tastes in music.” The report also defined self-injurious behavior as “a maladaptive coping strategy intended to relieve negative emotions such as anger, anxiety, frustration, or guilt... It is usually unrelated to an immediate suicide attempt.” “The study found that belonging to the Goth subculture was strongly associated with a lifetime prevalence of self harm (53%) and attempted suicide (47%). For comparison, the rate of self-harming behavior among the general youth population in the United Kingdom is 7% to 14%, and the rate of suicide attempts is about 6%.” “Since our study found that more reported self-harm before, rather than after, becoming a Goth, this suggests that young people with a tendency to self-harm are attracted to the Goth subculture... Rather than posing a risk, it's also possible that by belonging to this subculture young people are gaining valuable social and emotional support from their peers.” On the Xnetgoth on-line community, the discussion opened as follows: Hello
All, http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060417/hl_nm/goths_dc http://www.medpagetoday.com/Pediatrics/Parenting/tb/3098 I thought it would be a good topic of discussion. What are your opinions; do youth become more melancholy and disposed to darker thoughts after 'becoming goth' or are people with a certain personality or mindset pre-disposed to have a greater possibility of 'becoming goth'? Rose Rose, David Dellman This is only the personal opinion of an old guy whose encounters with teenage goths are limited to bumping into them at concerts. Nevertheless, I think this part of the first article might be pretty accurate: “Michael van Beinum, a child-and-adolescent psychiatrist, said the Goth subculture might be attractive to young people with mental health problems, allowing them to find a community where their distress might be more easily understood.” People gravitate to people who are either like them or who at last understand what it's like to be like them. I like hanging out with you folks in this group because I feel you understand the darker side of my personality in a way most people don't. So many well-meaning Christians tell me how life is supposed to be all sweetness and light. But we all know that's bulls**t. God's in the dark places too, maybe even especially. So I gravitate toward those who understand the dark side. Everybody moves in the direction of those who welcome them. If kids who recognize the hypocrisy of always looking on the bright side want to align themselves with others of a like mind, they're going to feel comfortable with the goth culture. It'll feel like home. Chances are they'll find persons who have also done things harmful to them selves. Maybe they won't feel so alone, and maybe that will help keep them alive. Now I'm rambling...sorry. Phil I wonder why these articles continue to surface, what brings them on. I loved that the end of the second article mentions that perhaps we find each other and offer emotional support. That I agree with. It is also interesting the downward spiral of being female, having divorced parents, drug use, and isolation. It isn't being gothic, it is being ignored by one's parents, shunned from society, and left alone because you are perceived as being different. So are you born gothic or does society shape you as such. “The eye is always caught by light, but shadows have more to say.” Gregory I would love to do a study where we see what makes up a gothic person; creativity, intelligence, talent for the arts or music, etc. It never ceases to amaze me when I converse with a breezy sunshine types how utterly idiotic they can be. Like they hit a brick wall when their brain reaches for a small amount of depth or logic. Not in all cases, but in enough to allow me to make a judgment on it. Perhaps we should start writing articles about shiny, happy people and brain waves. Hannah What are your thoughts? Please email me. David Dellman |