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Background: Cyberbullying victimization and suicidal ideation are both ongoing deleterious social problems in South Korea. Using the social-ecological approach, this study examined the association between cyberbullying victimization and suicidal ideation as well as the buffering role of school connectedness in this relationship. Methods: A nationally representative sample of 7333 adolescents from the 2016 Korean Children and Youth Right Study participated in the study. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Wald chi-square test, bivariate correlations, and multivariate logistic regression analyses. Results: Nearly 17.7% of adolescents were cyberbullied, and 28.4% had suicidal ideation in the past 12 months. Cyberbullying victims were at an increased risk of suicidal ideation. The results also found that parental abuse, family dysfunction, and perceived peer relationship stress were positively associated with suicidal ideation, while parental support for autonomy was negatively associated with suicidal ideation. Further, school connectedness moderated on the relationship between cyberbullying victimization and adolescent suicidal ideation. Conclusions: These findings suggest that various stakeholders should consider interventions and preventive programs that address school connectedness when working with adolescents who are victims of cyberbullying and exhibit suicidal behavior.

BackgroundWith the dishonor of being the highest suicide rated country in Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, South Korea should take more initiatives in suicide prevention. Although the role of the media and its relation to actual suicide attempts has been tested and supported by many studies, the suicide reporting guidelines are not well followed. The purpose of this study is to examine how well Korean newspapers adhere to existing guidelines and to suggest limitation and improvements for the current guidelines.MethodsFive mainstream newspapers in South Korea, namely, Kyunghyang Shinmun, Hankyoreh, Chosun Ilbo, JoongAng Daily, and Dong-A Ilbo, were chosen for the analysis. Using the Naver news search engine, articles dated from January 1, 2014, to December 31, 2017, were selected with the keyword “suicide” and advanced option “printed newspaper.” However, articles, columns, opinions, and reviews that utilized the word “suicide” in a general context were excluded from the final analysis. Finally, the number of cases was narrowed down to 368. Each article was analyzed using the guideline framework consisting of 13 items: sensational coverage, overstatement, direct wording, method used, details about site/location, photographs, suicide note, generalization, speculation, romanticization, interviews with the bereaved, help-seeking information, and public education.ResultsMore than 60% of the articles included direct wording (63.9%), mentioned the method used (68.2%), and provided details about the site or location (74.5%). Nearly half of the articles revealed the contents of the suicide note (44.6%). Less than 3% of the suicide reports had information about hotline logo or phone numbers (1.4%) and facts regarding suicide and suicide prevention (2.2%).ConclusionsOur study revealed that the guidelines were ineffective in their monitoring role and that most of the newspapers were incompliant with many significant guideline items in South Korea. Our findings not only explore the limitations of the current guidelines but also provide an important rationale as to why there should be stronger suicide monitoring regulation or an agency with sufficient authority to prevent suicide in a nation-wide scale.

While the prevalence of young people’s conventional cigarette use has decreased in many countries, the use of e-cigarettes has risen. To effectively counteract the growing popularity of e-cigarettes among young people internationally, researchers should know the exact prevalence as well as the protective and risk factors associated with vaping. Based on five eligibility criteria, 53 articles were chosen and analyzed by general characteristics, prevalence, sample characteristics, gender difference, protective factors, and risk factors. In this study, the international pooled prevalence of young people’s lifetime e-cigarette use was 15.3%, the current use was 7.7%, and dual use was 4.0%. While the highest lifetime, current, and dual prevalence were found in Sweden, Canada, and the United Kingdom, respectively, the lowest prevalence was found in Germany, followed by South Korea and Sweden. Some protective and risk factors include perceived cost and danger of vaping, parental monitoring, internal developmental assets, cigarette use, family and peer smoking, exposure to online advertisements, and the presence of nearby retail stores. Based on this review, researchers and practitioners can develop different intervention programs and strategies for young smokers.

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