This document summarizes key issues related to youth mental health in the United States. It finds that 1 in 5 youth have or will have a serious mental illness. The most common disorders among youth are substance use disorders, personality disorders, anxiety disorders, and mood disorders. Many factors can influence mental illness risk in youth, including socioeconomic status, minority status, trauma, bullying and lack of sleep. However, less than half of youth with mental disorders receive treatment due to various barriers like stigma, lack of perceived need for help, and poor access to care. The document recommends developing technology-based interventions to address specific disorders and barriers faced by different youth groups.

1. Youth Mental Health
Kate Wilburn & Emma Pence

2. Background
• 1 in 5 youth in the U.S. have or will have a serious mental
illness1,2
• Mental disorders make up half of the disease burden for
youth in the U.S.3
• 75% of all lifetime cases of mental illness begin by age 241
• Suicide is the second highest cause of death in youth in high-
income countries, and the third leading cause of death in the
U.S.1,4,5

3. Disorders and Prevalence Rates in the U.S.
13-18 year olds 18-24 year olds
Distribution of the major classes of DSM-IV
disorders among youth in the U.S. with at least one
disorder (N=6,483).2
Most common disorders by
prevalence6:
1. Substance use disorders
2. Personality disorders
3. Anxiety disorders
4. Mood disorders

4. Factors Associated with Mental Illness in Youth
• Socioeconomic Status
• Minority Youth
• Self-esteem, Coping, Resilience & Social Support
• Child Maltreatment & Trauma
• Bullying
• Sleep
• Stress

5. Help-Seeking & Access to Care
• In the US, it is estimated that less than a quarter to a half of youth
with mental disorders receive services8,9
• Help-seeking rates have been found to range from 10-34%10,11,12
• Youth are most likely to be treated for ADHD and other behavior
disorders and least likely to be treated for anxiety disorders7

6. Help-Seeking & Access to Care
• Stigma
• Self-reliance
• Perceived need for help
• Concerns about effectiveness of treatment
• Confidentiality and trust of providers
• High social support
• Access to care

7. Technology & Mental Health
• Well-being: self-esteem, social support, depression
• Cyberbullying
• Online content
• Technology interventions: treatment, promotion, prevention

8. Conclusions & Recommendations
Countless societal, individual, interpersonal, and institutional factors
threaten the mental and emotional wellness of youth. Many of these
factors also create barriers to youth receiving the mental health
services they need.
• Girls, Hispanic, and African American youth: interventions focusing on mood and anxiety
disorders
• Boys: interventions focusing on behavior disorders and substance use
• College students: interventions focusing on stress, sleep, and substance use
• Early adolescents: interventions focusing on bullying, anxiety, and behavior disorders
• LGBTQ youth: interventions focusing on suicide prevention
• Social media can be used as a tool to decrease stigma, identify youth in need of services, and
connect them with resources or other youth experiencing mental health issues

9. Intervention Ideas
• Website designed to encourage help-seeking in youth, give informal support and
encourage formal care by providing resources
• Computerized CBT program tailored to Latino American and African American
youth
• Web or mobile app for suicide prevention in LGBTQ youth
• Social media campaign aimed at girls for prevention or awareness of mood and
anxiety disorders
• Videogame aimed at boys for preventing or treating behavior and substance use
disorders
• Web or mobile app for college mental wellness that integrate self-care and
counseling sessions
• SMS campaign for youth that sends bi-weekly health tips

10. References
1. National Alliance on Mental Illness. Mental Health Facts: Children & Teens. Retrieved from https://www.nami.org/getattachment/Learn-
More/Mental-Health-by-the-Numbers/childrenmhfacts.pdf
2. Merikangas, K. R., He, J. P., Burstein, M., Swanson, S. A., Avenevoli, S., Cui, L., ... & Swendsen, J. (2010). Lifetime prevalence of mental
disorders in US adolescents: results from the National Comorbidity Survey Replication–Adolescent Supplement (NCS-A). Journal of the
American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 49(10), 980-989.
3. World Health Organization. (2011). The global burden of disease: 2004 update. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2008.
4. United Nations. (2014). Social inclusion of youth with mental health conditions. Retrieved from
http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/documents/youth/youth-mental-health.pdf.
5. Hawton, K., Saunders, K. E., & O'Connor, R. C. (2012). Self-harm and suicide in adolescents. The Lancet, 379(9834), 2373-2382.
6. Blanco, C., Okuda, M., Wright, C., Hasin, D. S., Grant, B. F., Liu, S. M., & Olfson, M. (2008). Mental health of college students and their
non–college-attending peers: results from the national epidemiologic study on alcohol and related conditions. Archives of general
psychiatry, 65(12), 1429-1437.
7. Merikangas, K. R., He, J. P., Burstein, M., Swendsen, J., Avenevoli, S., Case, B., ... & Olfson, M. (2011). Service utilization for lifetime
mental disorders in US adolescents: Results of the National Comorbidity Survey–Adolescent Supplement (NCS-A). Journal of the
American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 50(1), 32-45.
8. Gulliver, A., Griffiths, K. M., & Christensen, H. (2010). Perceived barriers and facilitators to mental health help-seeking in young people: a
systematic review. BMC psychiatry, 10(1), 1.
9. Bains, R. M. (2014). African American adolescents and mental health care: a metasynthesis. Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychiatric
Nursing, 27(2), 83-92.
10. Hunt, J., & Eisenberg, D. (2010). Mental health problems and help-seeking behavior among college students. Journal of Adolescent
Health, 46(1), 3-10.
11. McLean, C. P., Asnaani, A., Litz, B. T., & Hofmann, S. G. (2011). Gender differences in anxiety disorders: prevalence, course of illness,
comorbidity and burden of illness. Journal of psychiatric research, 45(8), 1027-1035.

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