Every tenth question on here is about suicide. Why does yahoo make up these questions, except to scare us?

Hmm. Haven't bothered with Yahoo Answers in quite some time. Don't remember suicidal posts. What brought me into Yahoo Answers was during some search for something completely unrelated, I accidentally pulled up a post from Yahoo wherein a boy related a tale of guilt and horror from which I realized he was suffering from severe OCD with sexual overtones. Nobody would have made up that post, nobody had correctly interpreted that post (I have a PhD in Psychology), and I couldn't figure out the format in time to answer and tell him he wasn't a monster but needed professional help immediately. I'm still haunted by what happened to that boy. So I haunted the halls of psychology for some time, looking for redemption by helping other troubled souls, and suicidal ideation was not a prominent feature. Has it changed?

I doubt they are that frequent, but if you see any at all they violate the Terms of Service in Yahoo answers. Some time back the Yahoo Answers Team answered as to what we as users should do when we see questions that indicate the Asker is suicidal. I'll paste it here:

Rest assured we take this issue very seriously. When reporting any suicide-related question, please mark it as a ToS violation (additional details: suicide).

From there, we have to remove the content (a legal requirement) and then we proceed by sending out a special package with advice on how to cope via email.

This information is compiled with input from leading experts in the field.

Hi Andy. I hope you are well.

I see them quite often on another poetry forum, the poem's themselves,

but I have not ventured out from poetry to much on Yahoo Answers; this

format I struggle with.

If people or yahoo make some up, it's their problem. We live in a hurting

world, so am sure some are legit and they are reaching out for help and/or

encouragement. Who knows. All i know is Jesus Christ is the only answer.

Best always

Thomas

Yahoo doesn't make up questions to scare its users. Yahoo staff rarely asks (or answers) questions at all.

Report the suicide questions. Unless a user is a trained suicide counselor and knows exactly what to say to a potential suicide, he/she has no business responding. Even a well-meaning response might be the WRONG thing to say.

Many of those questions are posted by trolls to get negative reactions from others. They're not in harm's way, but the bigger danger lies in someone who may not be asking/answering on Yahoo Answers but rather searching the topic of how to commit suicide. Yahoo Answers results show up on a search of most any topic.

Such questions tend to attract responses such as 'Just off yourself already, no one cares' and 'So do it, coward, no one will miss you' -- reading that garbage might be the last straw to someone who is already convinced his/her life is not worth living.

Yahoo doesn't ask these question on suicide here. It's coming from kids most under the age of 13 who are not scared yet of dying. The think it funny to ask they question because they don't really understand what death really is yet.

Why would questions about suicide scare you? That makes no sense.

dear kind sir, mam,

they are mostly all serious

and need some assistance

what better place for more than one

to benifit, even trolls have their bad days?

Best Wishes

Mars Mission

Source:) Studies.

YA does NOT make up that or any other question.Why would such a Q scare you anyway,those people who post that(mostly trolls) are strangers to you?

They are not from staff`and suicide is a big problem. Do not dismiss them.