3 negative cases of Van Hanh Mall: Not spiritual, the real cause is shocking?

Recently, public opinion has focused on the fact that in a short period of time, Van Hanh Mall has had 3 negative selections. Many people think that it is related to spiritual phenomena, but in fact it is not.

On the morning of April 26, at Van Hanh Mall (District 10, Ho Chi Minh City), there was another incident of a person leaving on the 7th floor. The incident caused the mall to post two long letters to customers, along with the message: "No matter what happens, we are always here, ready to share and accompany you. Van Hanh Mall always believes that bright things will come in the next journey of all of us."

Previously, in mid-March and early April 2025, there were two similar incidents here. The victims were all male and very young. The consecutive incidents at a large center have attracted the attention of many people, and at the same time, raised many spiritual speculations to explain this worrying situation.

However, from a psychological and sociological perspective, negative incidents occurring repeatedly in the same location, within a short period of time, are not related to spirituality but are called the Werther Effect - a term used to describe the phenomenon of increased suicides after the media reports in detail about a previous incident.

The effect originated from Goethe's novel "The Sorrows of Young Werther". After the book was published, a series of young people in Europe imitated the negative actions of the main character. Typically in the UK, the incident began in January 2007, when Dale Crole (18 years old) passed away in an abandoned warehouse 10km from the town.

Soon, a series of similar cases occurred. Although many of them had never met each other, they all died in the same way as Dale Crole, the initiator. Researchers found that starting with Dale’s deat.h, all of the cases were reported in the local press with great detail and emotion, attracting a lot of attention. And that inadvertently turned negative choices into “models of behavior” that could be imitated.

Similar to the incident at Van Hanh Mall, this is a famous shopping center, when a case occurs, information is quickly spread widely on social networks. It is even discussed with intense emotions and described with pictures, clips, or detailed stories. All of this can trigger negative ideas hidden in the minds of many other people, causing the risk of a domino effect.

According to research by James Mercy and colleagues in the US, the risk of suicid.e in an individual increases by two times if they have witnessed the deat.h of an acquaintance; even increasing by seven times if that deat.h occurs within a year. Even more frightening is that psychological contagion through the media does not require a personal relationship. An article, a video, or a mourning status can also become a catalyst for someone in a state of mental instability.

The same goes for the Van Hanh Mall incident, the mechanism of the Werther Effect is also very clear: First, negative incidents occur in public places, are filmed, posted and widely shared on social networks, attracting a lot of attention. From there, it triggers deep feelings of empathy in people who are experiencing psychological crises.

Next, when the location of the incident is associated with symbolism (a shopping mall) and has had similar incidents before, it creates a psychological suggestion in the minds of others, making this place more likely to become the location for subsequent negative incidents.

According to experts, choosing public spaces can reflect a desire to be “seen” and “heard,” even in the final moments. For some desperate people, destructive behavior is not only a personal end, but also sends a message to society about their loneliness and pai.n. And when society responds with excessive attention or the media responds with drama, it can turn pai.n into a symbol, setting a precedent for others to follow.

Just last night (April 27), also at Van Hanh Mall, a woman was said to have intended to leave on her own but was stopped by security in time after the incident of a young man born in 2002 choosing to be negative on the morning of April 26 dominated the media and the internet. And this continued to happen with the case of the woman, raising concerns about what was about to happen.

The gir.l who was stopped at Van Hanh Mall spoke out strongly: Scolded the security guard, responded to netizens Bảo Nam12:12:38 28/04/2025On the evening of April 27, the image of a woman surrounded by security guards at Van Hanh Mall appeared widely on social media forums. It was suspected that the woman came to Van Hanh Mall with negative intentions, but fortunately the security guards discovered and stopped her in time.