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Study Suggests Dark Side to Goth Youth Culture

April 14, 2006
Young people embracing the Goth subculture tend to favor black clothing and heavy metal music, but a new study says it may be more than a matter of style. Rates of self harm and attempted suicide are high within Goth youth subculture, according to a study published online at the British Medical Journal's Web site.

Deliberate self harm is common among young people, with rates of 7-14% in the UK. The study says it is particularly widespread in certain populations and may be linked to depression, attempted suicide, and various psychiatric disorders in later life. Contemporary Goth youth subculture has been linked with self harm, but there is little evidence to support this.

Researchers at the University of Glasgow surveyed 1,258 young people during their final year of primary school (age 11) and again at ages 13, 15, and 19. They were asked about self harm and identification with a variety of youth subcultures, including Goth.

They found that belonging to the Goth subculture was strongly associated with a lifetime prevalence of self harm (53%) and attempted suicide (47%).

Even after adjusting for factors such as social class, parental separation, smoking, alcohol use, or previous depression, Goth identification remained the single strongest predictor of either self harm or suicide attempt.

To test how specific this identification effect was to Goth, they analysed rates of self harm among 14 other common youth subcultures. Although some other subcultures were also associated with self harm (Punk and Mosher), the association was strongest for Goth.

"Although only fairly small numbers of young people identify as belonging to the Goth subculture, rates of self-harm and attempted suicide are very high among this group," said Robert Young, lead researcher on the study.

"One common suggestion is they may be copying subcultural icons or peers. But since our study found that more reported self-harm before, rather than after, becoming a Goth, this suggests that young people with a tendency to self-harm are attracted to the Goth subculture."

The study said that rather than posing a risk, it's also possible that by belonging to this subculture young people are gaining valuable social and emotional support from their peers. However, the study was based on small numbers and replication may be needed to confirm the results.

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