Youth suicide in India is when young Indian people deliberately end their own life. People aged 15 to 24 years have the highest suicide rate in India, which is consistent with international trends in

youth suicide Youth suicide is when a young person, generally categorized as someone below the legal age of majority, deliberately ends their own life. Rates of youth suicide and attempted youth suicide in Western societies and other countries are high. You ...

. 35% of recorded

suicides in India Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and subs ...

occur in this age group. Risk factors and methods of youth suicide differ from those in other age groups.

Statistics

Recorded annual youth suicide rates in India are 80 per 100,000 in females and 34 per 100,000 in males (compared to 10.4 per 100,000 in the general Indian population). These reported figures are estimated to be six- to eight-fold under-estimates of the true incidence. Surveys of high school students in India estimate prevalence of

suicidal ideation Suicidal ideation, or suicidal thoughts, means having thoughts, ideas, or ruminations about the possibility of ending one's own life.World Health Organization, ''ICD-11 for Mortality and Morbidity Statistics'', ver. 09/2020MB26.A Suicidal ideatio ...

at 6–22%, and of suicide attempts at 0.39–8%. A survey conducted in 2009 found that 3.9% of young people have exhibited some suicidal behavior.

Risk factors

Biological risk factors

Young age is itself a risk factor for suicide. Developmental changes during youth lead to psychological changes and greater impulsivity. The risk of suicide for young female adults is higher than that of males. This may be mediated by social factors in addition to biology.

Psychological factors

Negative affect, such as low

self-esteem Self-esteem is confidence in one's own worth or abilities. Self-esteem encompasses beliefs about oneself (for example, "I am loved", "I am worthy") as well as emotional states, such as triumph, despair, pride, and shame. Smith and Mackie (2007) d ...

and hopelessness, tends to increase the risk of suicide in young adults. Strategies such as active problem solving and distraction help to protect against suicide, but maladaptive

coping strategies Coping refers to conscious strategies used to reduce unpleasant emotions. Coping strategies can be cognitions or behaviours and can be individual or social. Theories of coping Hundreds of coping strategies have been proposed in an attempt to ...

increase the risk. Impulsivity is a psychological factor seen to increase the risk of suicidality in young adults. It has been seen that impulsivity when combined with aggression tends to cause suicide ideation in male youth.

Socio-environmental factors

Trauma and discrimination are strong risk factors for suicide in youth. Sexual, physical and emotional abuse are all associated with increased risk of suicide, as are experience of bullying and loneliness. Experience of discrimination increases incidence of suicide compared to the general population. This is reflected in greater rates of suicide among members of certain castes and religious minorities. Discrimination based on gender orientation and sexuality is also a risk factor for suicide in youth in India. Social and environmental factors contribute to the observed sex difference in prevalence. Abuse and

intimate partner violence Intimate partner violence (IPV) is domestic violence by a current or former spouse or partner in an intimate relationship against the other spouse or partner. IPV can take a number of forms, including physical, verbal, emotional, economic and sex ...

are associated with suicide. In 2019, 1400 deaths by suicide were reported as related to a

dowry A dowry is a payment, such as property or money, paid by the bride's family to the groom or his family at the time of marriage. Dowry contrasts with the related concepts of bride price and dower. While bride price or bride service is a payment b ...

. Young women may also experience more economic instability and greater stigma associated with mental ill-health.

Interventions

{{See also, Suicide Prevention and Intervention in India Evidence for interventions to prevent youth suicide in India suggests that a combination of individual therapy, family therapy and peer support system is needed. Broader public awareness interventions are advocated, rather than a focus on mental health and counselling.

References

Suicide in India Indiabr>Student Suicides In India-Hindi, SK Singh, Jagran PrimeStudent Suicides In India-English, SK Singh, Jagran Prime