Yu Hong-Zhang, Fu Tian, Zhou Jia-Nan, Ke Ping, Wang Yun-Xia
Faculty of Psychology, Naval Medical University, Shanghai, China.
Third Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, China.
Front Psychiatry. 2021 Apr 6;12:629904. doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2021.629904. eCollection 2021.
In China, we have seen dramatic increases in public concern over depression and mental health after the suicide of some famous persons. The objective of this study is to investigate the changes of search-engine query patterns to monitor this phenomenon based on the tragic suicide of a young Chinese pop star, Kimi Qiao. The daily search volume for depression was retrieved from both the Baidu Index (BDI) and the Sina MicroBlog Index (SMI). Besides, the daily BDI for suicide, schizophrenia, obsessive-compulsive disorder, common cold, stomach cancer, and liver cancer were collected for comparison. According to the time of Qiao's suicide, all data were divided into two periods (i.e., Period One from 1 September 2015 to 31 August 2016 while Period Two ranged from 1 October 2016 to 30 September 2017). The paired -test was used to compare the differences in search volumes between two periods. The Pearson correlation analysis was used to estimate correlations between the BDI and SMI for depression. The average BDI for depression, BDI for suicide, and SMI for depression in Period Two were significantly higher than in Period One ( < 0.05). There was a strong positive correlation between the BDI and SMI for depression ( = 0.97, < 0.001). And no significant difference in BDI for other diseases between the two periods was found. The changes of search-engine query patterns indicated that the celebrity's suicide might be able to improve the netizens' concern about depression in China. The study suggests publishing more practical knowledge and advice on depression through the Internet and social media, to improve the public's mental health literacy and help people to cope with their depressive symptoms appropriately.
在中国，一些名人自杀后，公众对抑郁症和心理健康的关注度急剧上升。本研究的目的是基于中国年轻流行歌星乔任梁的悲惨自杀事件，调查搜索引擎查询模式的变化，以监测这一现象。从百度指数（BDI）和新浪微博指数（SMI）中检索抑郁症的每日搜索量。此外，还收集了自杀、精神分裂症、强迫症、普通感冒、胃癌和肝癌的每日百度指数进行比较。根据乔任梁自杀的时间，所有数据分为两个时期（即2015年9月1日至2016年8月31日为第一时期，2016年10月1日至2017年9月30日为第二时期）。采用配对检验比较两个时期搜索量的差异。采用Pearson相关分析评估抑郁症百度指数与新浪微博指数之间的相关性。第二时期抑郁症的平均百度指数、自杀的百度指数和抑郁症的新浪微博指数均显著高于第一时期（<0.05）。抑郁症的百度指数与新浪微博指数之间存在很强的正相关（=0.97，<0.001）。两个时期其他疾病的百度指数没有显著差异。搜索引擎查询模式的变化表明，名人自杀可能会提高中国网民对抑郁症的关注度。该研究建议通过互联网和社交媒体发布更多关于抑郁症的实用知识和建议，以提高公众的心理健康素养，帮助人们适当应对抑郁症状。
