Youth perceptions of suicide and help-seeking: ‘They’d think I was weak or ‘‘mental’’’ Cate Curtis* Department of Psychology, Waikato University, Hamilton, New Zealand (Received 27 March 2009; final version received 23 March 2010) Youth suicide is an issue of international concern and the college population may have a considerably higher rate of suicidal behaviour than the general population, yet seeking help for suicidality is uncommon. This research sought to understand college students’ knowledge of suicidal behaviour and attitudes to help-seeking, in a New Zealand university. A mixed-method approach comprising a survey and interviews was utilised. Approximately one-fifth of participants had been suicidal, were aware of another student’s suicide and/or had supported a suicidal student. Some participants expressed willingness to seek help for another, but far fewer were willing to seek help for themselves. Key reasons for the latter include stigma and a perceived need for self-reliance. Participants expressed greater willingness to seek help for another if they were not a close friend. Keywords: suicide; help-seeking; suicide attempt; stigma; higher education Introduction Suicide as an area of concern and a target for prevention has arisen from findings that suggest that over 500 New Zealanders die by suicide every year; that is 13.1 per 100,000 population (for example, Ministry of Health 2007). Although rates of youth suicide have decreased during recent years, they remain higher than 20 years ago and youth suicide rates are high when compared internationally. In New Zealand, the most recent year for which statistics are available, 2005, shows that there were 108 deaths in the 1524 age group, and 211 deaths by suicide in the 2544 age group. Although New Zealand has invested in research on the topic, due to the small population collation and comparison of results can be difficult; this is the first research done in New Zealand to explore suicidality and related attitudes in a college population. Therefore, this introduction takes an international focus. Theoretically, the college population may havea higher rate of suicidal behaviour than the general population, due to a range of social factors, and the high number undergoing important and potentially stressful life transitions such as the change from secondary to tertiary education, adolescence to adulthood and increasing independence and responsibilities. Social factors may include academic stress and changing or lacking social networks (Hirsch and Ellis 1996, Konick and Gutierrez 2005) and the transition to college life can result in a loss of identity, loneliness and isolation (Scanlon et al. 2007) and financial stress. In addition, the highest suicide *Email: ccurtis@waikato.ac.nz Journal of Youth Studies Vol. 13, No. 6, December 2010, 699715 ISSN 1367-6261 print/ISSN 1469-9680 online # 2010 Taylor & Francis DOI: 10.1080/13676261003801747 http://www.informaworld.com