"Goodbye, My Friendcels": An Analysis of Incel Suicide Posts

Abstract

While an increasing number of researchers, non-profit organizations, and law enforcement agencies have expressed growing concern about the relationship between involuntary celibates (i.e. incels) and violence, no research to date has examined the potential for suicide and self-harm among men who call themselves incels. This study examines suicide posts shared to incel sub-Reddits that were collected by u/IncelGraveyard (N=80). The posts reveal that the notes discuss six subordinate themes, including the method of their planned attempt, the ways they used the internet, the online incel community, failed alternatives and coping, the effects of their suicide on others, and the afterlife. These broad themes offer a new and unique perspective about incels experiences, perceptions, and coping strategies and add to the growing body of literature by highlighting the complexity of incel grievances. This study can inform future research and policy by encouraging gender-based and incelspecific treatment, reframing the incel discourse among researchers and mental health professionals, and arguing for a suicide prevention model to also prevent mass violence. Acknowledgments:The authors are grateful to those colleagues and friends who reviewed this paper and offered suggestions.Involuntarily celibate men, or "incels," have been the target of recent concern among media sources, law enforcement agencies, mental health practitioners, and non-profit organizations. In online spaces and specific forums, incels-or men who cannot achieve romantic or sexual success-often air their grievances, discussing their physical appearance, struggles with mental health, social critiques, and frustration with their situations (Ging, 2019; Glace et al., 2021; Menzie, 2020). Due to the often overtly violent, racist, or misogynistic nature of many of the posts, incels have often been associated with notions of mass violence, particularly as a result of violent attacks by alleged incels across the United States and Canada. This connection between violence and the entire incel community has led to sweeping generalizations about the group, and the Texas Department of Public Safety (2020) recently dubbed incels "an emerging domestic terrorism threat" (p. 3).As incels become a growing area of study within a variety of disciplines including criminology and criminal justice, sociology, and more, academics have taken a variety of theoretical and methodological approaches to studying incel behavior and CrimRxiv Goodbye, My Friendcels": An Analysis of Incel Suicide Posts 3 ideologies. However, none to date have examined how the incel identity and the subsequent experiences can lead to self-harm and suicide. This study provides a brief overview of the incel literature followed by a synthesis of the existing research about tangentially related issues, including coping strategies, mental health treatment, suicide, and online communities. It then outlines the qualitative analysis of 80 suicide posts from incels, identifying emergent themes and subthemes, and offer...

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