Association between the 2008 financial crisis and suicidal thoughts and behaviors among the United States adolescents: An interrupted time series analysis.

Authors

Ze-Min Cai, Jun-Yan Xi, Jun Luo, Wei Hu

Published in

Psychiatry research. Volume 367. Pages 117520. Oct 13, 2026. Epub Oct 13, 2026.

Abstract

Economic crises are associated with adverse mental health in adults, yet their association with non-fatal suicidal thoughts and behaviors (STBs) in adolescents remains poorly understood. We examined temporal trends in five STBs among United States adolescents, before and after the 2008 financial crisis.
We performed a population-based interrupted time series (ITS) analysis of 13 biennial waves (1999-2023; n = 198,941) of the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS), using sampling weights for national representativeness. Joinpoint regression independently localized trend inflection points, and segmented ITS regression with Newey-West standard errors estimated level and slope changes around the 2008 crisis, with stratification by sex, grade, and race/ethnicity, and sensitivity analyses.
STBs declined before the crisis, excepted sad/Hopelessness. At 2009, immediate level changes were small and heterogeneous across outcomes, whereas every series showed a significant post-crisis slope increase (β₃ = 0.29-2.27 percentage points per biennial wave; all P < 0.001), reversing the pre-crisis declines or stability into sustained rises. By 2023, observed prevalence exceeded the counterfactual projection for all outcomes. Reversals were roughly twice as large in females versus males.
The 2008 financial crisis was followed by a reversal of pre-crisis declines into sustained increases in adolescent STBs, with prevalence exceeding pre-crisis projections by 2023, indicating delayed mental-health consequences. These findings support sustained service provision beyond acute crisis periods, prioritizing the most affected groups, particularly female adolescents.

PMID:
42896465
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 20 Oct 2026.

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