Suicide bulletin board systems comparison between Japan and Germany.

An online questionnaire (n = 301) was conducted to analyze the cross-cultural influence of the use of suicide bulletin board systems. Factor analysis demonstrated that participants had two types of motives: the constructive motive of mutual help and the destructive motive of suicide preparation. The results showed that suicidal thoughts did not worsen with suicide bulletin board systems usage, and there is no difference in the demographic data, motives of the participants, and the effects of the suicide message boards between Japan and Germany.