Characteristics of the content of consultation texts of individuals with high levels of suicidal ideation: Text mining of email text in Internet gatekeeper activities

The aim of this study was to identify the characteristics present in the consultation text of individuals at high risk of suicide in a text-based crisis intervention project for suicide prevention. We analyzed data, including online questionnaire responses and consultation text content, from 519 individuals (69.7% of whom were women and 62.8% of whom were under 20) consulted in the Internet Gatekeeper project. Results from correspondence analysis and a comparison of co-occurrence network diagrams indicated that the consultation text of individuals at high risk of suicide often includes references to suicide, death, and suicide methods, references to being a burden to others such as family members and parents, and references to self-hatred. However, there were relatively few references to communication with those around them. By focusing on these key points, it may be possible to more effectively monitor the extent to which the target population of the consultation service includes individuals at high risk of suicide.