BMJ  2006;332:1216 (20 May), doi:10.1136/bmj.332.7551.1216

Letter

Self harm in Goth youth subculture

Conclusion relates only to small sample

EDITOR—Young et al claim to find a strong association between Goth subculture and deliberate selfharm before and after adjusting for confounders.¹ Importantly, they do not distinguish that the Goth subculture is not easily defined or categorised, spans several continents, and has evolved to include a wide range of musical and clothing styles. This contemporaneously includes Mallgoths in the United States, Gogans in Australia, Dark in Latin America, Cuervos in Spain, and Spooky Kids and Neogoths in the United Kingdom.^{2 3} Young et al should have made it clear in their discussion that any conclusion only relates to a small sample of gothic youth in the central Clydeside conurbation. One cannot assume that Goth youths' subcultural trends, icons, and ideals would be similar in other geosocial regions.

Holme Tower Marie Curie Hospital, Cardiff CF64 3YR mtaubert{at}hotmail.com

Walton Centre for Neurology and Neurosurgery, Liverpool L9 7LJ

---

Competing interests: None declared.

References

1. Young R, Sweeting H, West P. Prevalence of deliberate selfharm and attempted suicide within contemporary Goth youth subculture: longitudinal cohort study. BMJ 2006; 332: 1058-61. (6 May.)[Abstract/Free Full Text]
2. Kilpatrick N. The Goth bible: a compendium for the darkly inclined. St. Martin's Griffin, 2004.
3. What is Goth? New York: Weiser Books, 2004.

Related Article

Prevalence of deliberate self harm and attempted suicide within contemporary Goth youth subculture: longitudinal cohort study

Robert Young, Helen Sweeting, and Patrick West
BMJ 2006 332: 1058-1061. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]