Social media use, economic recession and income inequality in relation to trends in youth suicide in high-income countries: a time trends analysis

Prianka Padmanathan,Helen Bould,Lizzy Winstone,Paul Moran,David Gunnell

doi:10.1016/j.jad.2020.05.057

Prianka Padmanathan, Helen Bould + Show 3 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2020.05.057

Copy DOI

Abstract

BackgroundSuicide rates have risen in young people in several high-income countries over the last decade. Reasons for the increases are unclear. MethodsWe analysed trends in suicide rates in 15-24 year olds over the period 2000-2017 in high-income countries with populations >20 million using Joinpoint analysis. We investigated differences in the following population-level exposures between countries that are and are not experiencing suicide rates rises: 1) 2008 economic recession as indexed by changes in GDP; 2) Gini income inequality; 3) daily social media use. ResultsFour of the 11 countries studied are experiencing youth suicide rate rises: Australia, Canada, the UK, the USA. The year the increase began ranged from 2003 (95% confidence interval: 2002, 2007) in the UK to 2009 (95% CI: 2007, 2012) in Australia. There was little evidence of an association between social media use and youth suicide trends, and inconsistent evidence regarding the impact of the 2008 economic recession. Suicide rate rises were seen in countries with higher GDP per capita (Wilcoxon rank sum (WRS) z=-2.27; p=0.02) and income inequality (WRS z=-2.45; p=0.01) in 2008. LimitationsSuicide data were only available until 2016/2017. Social media and income inequality data were not available for all study years. The effect of other important factors were not investigated due to a lack of comparable data. ConclusionsOur analyses indicate that the most populous high-income countries experiencing a rise in youth suicide rates are predominantly English-speaking, with higher levels of income inequality and GDP. These findings provide preliminary evidence regarding possible contributory factors to guide further research.

Highlights

Suicide rates in young people have markedly increased in several high-income countries over the last decade (Bould et al, 2019; Ruch et al, 2019; Stefanac et al, 2019)
We investigated concurrent trends in three leading contenders as explanations for suicide rate rises, which were selected on a priori grounds based on previously published associations with suicidal behaviour: the 2008 global recession, increases in income inequality, and growth in social media use
Suicide rates are rising in Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom (UK) and USA (Table1/ Fig. 1)

Summary

Introduction

Suicide rates in young people have markedly increased in several high-income countries over the last decade (Bould et al, 2019; Ruch et al, 2019; Stefanac et al, 2019). In England and Wales, for example, rates almost doubled in 15-19 year olds between 2010 and 2017, with some evidence that the rise was more marked in females than males (Bould et al, 2019) These increases appear to have been accompanied by other signals of deteriorating mental health among young people (McManus et al, 2014; McManus et al, 2019; Twenge et al, 2019). Conclusions: Our analyses indicate that the most populous high-income countries experiencing a rise in youth suicide rates are predominantly English-speaking, with higher levels of income inequality and GDP These findings provide preliminary evidence regarding possible contributory factors to guide further research

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion