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Trusted Messengers to People Disproportionately Impacted by Suicide

Read the Highlights

Download the executive summary of highlights from the report

In the inaugural 988 Formative Research study, participants indicated that when they’re struggling with their mental health or are in crisis, they most often turn to their spouse/partner, mother/caregiver, siblings, and friends for help and advice. These trusted messengers are also the ones that participants said they would most trust information on 988 from, indicating their vital role in helping encourage, recommend, and influence their loved ones/close connections to seek support through 988.

The second study in this project is focused on the trusted messengers among populations that are disproportionately impacted by suicide. Trusted messengers are the individuals who people turn to for trusted, unbiased information and help when they’re struggling with their mental health or in crisis.

Continue reading to learn more about the study findings, and to access the full research study and the communication toolkit.

988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: Messaging and Communications to Trusted Messengers of People Disproportionately Impacted by Suicide

The findings in this report provide a deeper look into how trusted messengers to people in groups disproportionately impacted by suicide view and/or access mental health resources and crisis services, and how to best develop messaging to encourage use and/or access to 988.

Download Report

Key insights from the study include: 

 

988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline Communication Toolkit

This toolkit is designed to help organizations that reach the public―including nonprofits, state and local government entities and others—build awareness and trust in 988 among trusted messengers to people disproportionately impacted by suicide.

Communicators can use this toolkit as a resource to craft messaging, build campaigns, and test calls to action with trusted messengers of people who are disproportionally impacted by suicide to educate and increase usage of 988.

Download Toolkit

 

 

Key messaging insights from the toolkit include:

Help Promote the 988 Formative Research

Use these materials to help disseminate findings.