Suicide Rates Actually Lowest During Holidays, Study Finds

New research from the University of Pennysylvania challenges long-held misconceptions about suicide and the holiday season.

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For decades, a dark seasonal narrative has persisted: The holidays are a dangerous time of heightened suicide risk. Now, a new content analysis shows the irony behind this myth: News media has perpetuated this misconception.

Researchers from the Annenberg Public Policy Center (APPC) have found that during the 2023–2024 holiday season, 58 percent of newspaper stories linking suicide and holidays reinforced this false narrative instead of dispelling it.

Seasonal–Not Holiday-Related–Changes in Mood

The analysis, conducted by the APPC of the University of Pennsylvania, found that 58 percent of newspaper stories linking the holidays and suicide upheld the myth, while 42 percent debunked it.