Banality Reinvestigated: a Computer-Based Content Analysis of Suicidal and Forced Death Documents

Suicide & simulated notes & forced death documents were processed on the Harvard III Psycho-Sociological Dictionary. For each text, frequencies of related words were generated; these were contrasted with each other & with baseline data using z scores. The results indicated that the suicidal groups were more “deviant”. Other findings are concreteness & constriction of focus for suicides, while the simulated group appeared to be fabricating a popular stereotype rather than exhibiting empathy.(DD)