IJS Lecture: Michiko Ueda, "Suicide and Mental Health During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Japan"

October 25, 2021

5:30PM - 7:00PM

Online (registration required)

Add to Calendar 2021-10-25 17:30:00 2021-10-25 19:00:00 IJS Lecture: Michiko Ueda, "Suicide and Mental Health During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Japan" The Institute for Japanese Studies presents: "Suicide and Mental Health During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Japan" Michiko Ueda Waseda University Abstract: Japan has one of the highest suicide rates in the OECD countries. Its suicide rate (the number of suicide deaths per 100,000 population) as of 2018 was 16.5; more than 20,000 people ended their life by suicide in that year alone. This webinar presents monthly trajectories of suicide deaths in Japan during the COVID‐19 pandemic using the latest suicide death records up to August 2021. The number of suicide deaths temporarily declined during the initial phase of the pandemic, but it subsequently increased starting in July 2020. A particularly large increase was observed among relatively young women and students. Our original monthly survey data indicated that the status of young individuals' mental health has significantly deteriorated during the pandemic and also that young female workers were more likely to have experienced a job or income loss than any other group. Potential causes of the increase in suicide deaths will be discussed. Michiko Ueda is Associate Professor in the Faculty of Political Science and Economics at Waseda University, in Tokyo, Japan. Prior to joining Waseda University, she has taught at Syracuse University and California Institute of Technology. Her research interests include suicide prevention, and public health, and public policy. Her latest publications include “Suicide and mental health during the COVID‐19 pandemic in Japan” (Journal of Public Health, 2021), “Mental health status of the general population in Japan during the COVID‐19 pandemic.” (Psychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences, 2020), and “Tweeting celebrity suicides: Users' reaction to prominent suicide deaths on Twitter and subsequent increases in actual suicides” (Social Science and Medicine, 2017). She received her Ph.D. in political science from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Online (registration required) OSU ASC Drupal 8 ascwebservices@osu.edu America/New_York public

Add to Calendar 2021-10-25 17:30:00 2021-10-25 19:00:00 IJS Lecture: Michiko Ueda, "Suicide and Mental Health During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Japan" The Institute for Japanese Studies presents: "Suicide and Mental Health During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Japan" Michiko Ueda Waseda University Abstract: Japan has one of the highest suicide rates in the OECD countries. Its suicide rate (the number of suicide deaths per 100,000 population) as of 2018 was 16.5; more than 20,000 people ended their life by suicide in that year alone. This webinar presents monthly trajectories of suicide deaths in Japan during the COVID‐19 pandemic using the latest suicide death records up to August 2021. The number of suicide deaths temporarily declined during the initial phase of the pandemic, but it subsequently increased starting in July 2020. A particularly large increase was observed among relatively young women and students. Our original monthly survey data indicated that the status of young individuals' mental health has significantly deteriorated during the pandemic and also that young female workers were more likely to have experienced a job or income loss than any other group. Potential causes of the increase in suicide deaths will be discussed. Michiko Ueda is Associate Professor in the Faculty of Political Science and Economics at Waseda University, in Tokyo, Japan. Prior to joining Waseda University, she has taught at Syracuse University and California Institute of Technology. Her research interests include suicide prevention, and public health, and public policy. Her latest publications include “Suicide and mental health during the COVID‐19 pandemic in Japan” (Journal of Public Health, 2021), “Mental health status of the general population in Japan during the COVID‐19 pandemic.” (Psychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences, 2020), and “Tweeting celebrity suicides: Users' reaction to prominent suicide deaths on Twitter and subsequent increases in actual suicides” (Social Science and Medicine, 2017). She received her Ph.D. in political science from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).  Online (registration required) East Asian Studies Center easc@osu.edu America/New_York public

The Institute for Japanese Studies presents:

"Suicide and Mental Health During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Japan"

Michiko Ueda
Waseda University

Abstract: Japan has one of the highest suicide rates in the OECD countries. Its suicide rate (the number of suicide deaths per 100,000 population) as of 2018 was 16.5; more than 20,000 people ended their life by suicide in that year alone. This webinar presents monthly trajectories of suicide deaths in Japan during the COVID‐19 pandemic using the latest suicide death records up to August 2021. The number of suicide deaths temporarily declined during the initial phase of the pandemic, but it subsequently increased starting in July 2020. A particularly large increase was observed among relatively young women and students. Our original monthly survey data indicated that the status of young individuals' mental health has significantly deteriorated during the pandemic and also that young female workers were more likely to have experienced a job or income loss than any other group. Potential causes of the increase in suicide deaths will be discussed.

Michiko Ueda is Associate Professor in the Faculty of Political Science and Economics at Waseda University, in Tokyo, Japan. Prior to joining Waseda University, she has taught at Syracuse University and California Institute of Technology. Her research interests include suicide prevention, and public health, and public policy. Her latest publications include “Suicide and mental health during the COVID‐19 pandemic in Japan” (Journal of Public Health, 2021), “Mental health status of the general population in Japan during the COVID‐19 pandemic.” (Psychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences, 2020), and “Tweeting celebrity suicides: Users' reaction to prominent suicide deaths on Twitter and subsequent increases in actual suicides” (Social Science and Medicine, 2017). She received her Ph.D. in political science from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

Free and Open to the Public (registration required)

If you require an accommodation, such as live captioning, to participate in this event, please contact EASC at easc@osu.edu. Requests made at least two weeks in advance of the event will generally allow us to provide seamless access, but the university will make every effort to meet requests made after this date.

This event is supported by a U.S. Department of Education Title VI grant to The Ohio State University East Asian Studies Center.