MAR 21, 2018
Many said it made them more empathetic.
When 13 Reasons Why premiered nearly a year ago, there was a lot of talk of the show's impact. Many people praised it, lauding the show for sparking an important dialogue about mental health, sexual assault, and many other issues young people face. But others questioned whether it brought about that conversation in a productive way. Now, Netflix says a new survey found that the majority of respondents felt watching the show was beneficial for them, and even made them feel more empathetic.
Netflix partnered with Northwestern University’s Center on Media and Human Development to survey 1,700 young people in the United States on their views of 13 Reasons Why. Of those who responded, 71% said the show was beneficial for them to watch. More than three-quarters of respondents said they learned things about depression and suicidal ideation, including how depression might impact young people, and that someone may be depressed without showing outward signs. Ultimately, young people in the survey said they sought out more information and had new discussions after watching 13 Reasons Why. The survey found that more than half of respondents had conversations about what to do if you're being bullied after viewing the show, while 41% talked about how to spot symptoms of mental health — and that's important.
Having conversations about mental health, suicide, sexual assault, and other topics dealt with in the show is key, but some experts said they didn't think the show started those conversations in the best way. In an op-ed for Teen Vogue, suicide prevention advocate MollyKate Cline wrote that the way the show portrays character Hannah Baker asking for — and not getting — help could discourage others from reaching out. She also pointed out that the show doesn't give young people positive examples of how to cope with mental health.
"If the idea is to scare people into reaching out to someone when they need help, this show will definitely do it. However, my problem is that the audience is shown what not to do without examples of what they actually should do," she wrote.
In the wake of the show, students at one school started an effort called "13 Reasons Why Not," in which young people shared reasons to live.
While 67% of respondents to the Netflix survey said the depiction of Hannah's death by suicide was necessary to show the reality and pain of it, suicide attempt survivor Dese'Rae L. Stage previously told Teen Vogue the scene in which Hannah dies violates guidelines set by suicide prevention experts. Dese'Rae told Teen Vogue, "Given my own experiences as a suicide attempt survivor, I think it was a little too hyper-realistic."
She added, "It violates all of the guidelines set out by suicide prevention organizations about how to portray [and] report on suicide. It's scary, it's gory, and it's very violent. It's filmed close up; it never cuts away."
Another survivor told Teen Vogue the scene could serve as a "step-by-step guide" on death by suicide. Still, another survivor felt the scene wasn't grisly enough, and warned that they felt it romanticized suicide.
The survey was not nationally representative, which means it can't be generalized to show the opinions of young people across the country. Still, what's clear from the results is 13 Reasons Why did start a conversation, and it's one worth having. The results showed that the majority of young people surveyed felt compelled to be kinder to one another, and showed them that their actions may impact another person. Since 20% of young people between 13 to 18 live with a mental health condition, and since we know that bullying can have an impact on someone's mental health, anything that encourages empathy and understanding is worth talking about.
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