quarter of young adults had contem-
plated suicide within the past 30 days.
Suicides among Black youth may
have increased for a variety of
reasons. For one thing, adverse
childhood experiences are extremely
high in this group, says Michael A.
Lindsey, a co-author of the new
study and executive director of the
McSilver Institute for Poverty Policy
and Research at New York Universi-
ty, and such experiences could be
increasing. Black youth may also be
experiencing more racial discrimina-
tion, which has been linked to an
increased risk of suicide. And they
may be traumatized by headlines
about the deaths of Trayvon Martin,
Michael Brown and other young
Black individuals.
Psychological barriers to accessing
mental health care may provide
another explanation for these find-
ings. “There’s a lot of stigma related
to mental health treatment that
seems to persist in Black communi-
ties and families,” Lindsey says,
“including the propensity to want to
share concerns related to one’s
emotional and psychological well-
being with family members only—
and not share it with professionals.”
It is unclear why rates of suicide
are increasing most among Black
girls, but Lindsey notes that the
discrimination and sexual violence
they experience may increase the
risk that they will take their own life.
According to the cdc, one in eight
high school girls of all races experi-
ences sexual dating violence,
compared with one in 26 high
school boys. Black teen girls also
appear to be at a higher risk of
sexual violence than girls of other
races—and such violence is a known
suicide risk factor. Other research
has pointed to the compounding
effects of sexism and racism on
Black girls and how together they
might increase this group’s risk of
depression and anxiety, compared
with that of Black boys.
Black girls also follow different
trajectories when contemplating
suicide than Black boys do, accord-
ing to another new study published in
September in Prevention Science.
Based on results from nationally
representative surveys, researchers
found that high schoolers who
attempted suicide impulsively,
without prior suicidal ideation, were
disproportionately Black and male
and less likely to report feelings of
sadness and hopelessness. Femalehigh schoolers, on the other hand,
were more apt to feel sad and
hopeless and go through mental
planning steps before their attempts.
According to Meghan Romanelli,
a licensed clinical social worker at
the University of Washington School
of Social Work and a co-author of
the Prevention Science paper, Black
boys who attempt suicide may be
less likely than others to suffer from
the feelings of sadness and hope-
lessness that characterize depres-
sion and might fit the criteria for
other diagnoses, such as post-trau-
matic stress disorder. If so, “it’s likely
that these youth are experiencing
symptoms or warning signs that we
aren’t recognizing or picking up on,”
she says. They may also be less likely
to tell others that they are struggling.
Another condition linked to suicide
in Black youth is attention deficithyperactivity disorder, or ADHD. In
the Journal of the American Academy
of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry
study, five- to 11-year-old Black
children with a diagnosis of ADHD
were at a heightened risk of suicide.
ADHD itself might not increase
suicide risk, Lindsey says. But rather
symptoms of ADHD and depres-
sion—which can include irritability and
interpersonal problems—can overlap
and make it hard for professionals to
recognize that kids with the disorder
are also depressed. “The underlying
reasons for why they’re irritable or
angry might be missed,” he notes.
The new studies have important
implications for suicide prevention in
Black communities. Teachers,
parents and mental health profes-
sionals who engage regularly with
Black youth need to be educated as
to “nuanced, subtle behaviors thatNEWS
“There’s a lot of stigma related to mental health
treatment that seems to persist in Black communities
and families, including the propensity to want to share
concerns related to one’s emotional and psychological
well-being with family members only—and not share it
with professionals.”
—Michael A. Lindsey