Report: Teen Mental Health Is Improving, Despite Growing School Violence
August 21, 2024The mental health of U.S. high school students is trending upward after a decade of unprecedented depression, violence, and suicidality among adolescents.
Still, the youth mental health crisis is far from over, as more teens are experiencing school-based violence and school absenteeism, according to a new report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) comparing 10-year trends and data from the 2021-2023 Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS).1Among the 20,000 public and private high school students surveyed, 40% said they experienced persistent sadness or hopelessness in 2023, down from 42% in 2021.
Suicidality rates also fell slightly: One-fifth of students seriously considered suicide, compared to 22% two years ago.Survey results broken down by students’ sexual and gender identity revealed that depressive symptoms remained stable or declined in most subgroups:Though the changes appear small, these incremental decreases represent potentially significant changes in teen mental health, especially for girls.
Just last year, the CDC reported that nearly 60% of teen girls “were suffering through an unprecedented wave of sadness and trauma,” which was double the rate reported a decade ago and twice the rate in boys.2Girls with diagnosed and undiagnosed ADHD are at a much higher risk for depression, suicidal thoughts and behaviors, and sexual violence than their neurotypical peers.
United States
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Cases: 46 252 513
Deaths: 750 423
Recovered: 0
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India
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Cases: 34 321 025
Deaths: 459 652
Recovered: 0
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Brazil
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Cases: 21 835 785
Deaths: 608 235
Recovered: 0
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United Kingdom
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Cases: 9 215 683
Deaths: 141 607
Recovered: 0
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Russia
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Cases: 8 494 589
Deaths: 237 619
Recovered: 0
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