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8 - Suicide and delinquent adolescents

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 August 2009

By
Amer Smajkic  and
David C. Clark
Edited by
Carol L. Kessler  and
Louis James Kraus
Amer Smajkic
Affiliation:
Rush University Medical Center Marshall Field IV Building 1720 West Polk Street Chicago, IL 60612 USA
David C. Clark
Affiliation:
Rush University Medical Center Armour Academic Center 600 Paulina Suite 529 Chicago, IL 60612 USA
Carol L. Kessler
Affiliation:
Columbia University, New York
Louis James Kraus
Affiliation:
Rush University, Chicago
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Summary

Introduction

According to the Surgeon General of the United States, youth suicide is a national tragedy and a major public health problem (US Department of Health and Human Services, 1999). From 1950–2001, the suicide rate for young people (ages 15–24) tripled from 2.7 per 100 000 to 9.9 per 100 000 (Arias et al., 2003). In 2002 the rates were unchanged at 9.9 per 100 000 (Kochanek et al., 2002). The 2001 rate translated to 13 435 deaths of adolescents ages 15–19 years.

From 1952–1994, the incidence of suicide among adolescents approximately tripled, although there has been a general decline in youth suicides since 1994. In 1950 the death rate for adolescent suicide was 2.7 per 100 000, in 1990 it was 11.1 per 100 000, with a decline to 7.4 per 100 000 in 2002. From 1950–1990 the suicide rate among adolescents increased by 411 percent. From 1990–2002 the suicide rate for 15- to 19-year-olds decreased by 33%. See Fig. 8.1.

Over the same period (1950 to present), unintentional injury has remained the leading cause of death for adolescents. In 2001 unintentional injury accounted for approximately 48 percent of all deaths among adolescents ages 15–19 years. Homicide and suicide have consistently ranked as the second and third leading causes of death, accounting for 14 and 12 percent, respectively, of all deaths among 15 to 19-year-olds (National Center for Health Prevention and Injury Control, 2001).

Keywords

delinquent adolescentsjailsjuvenile institutionsLindsay Hayes' surveypsychiatric risk factorssuicidemental health servicesprisons
Type
Chapter
Information
The Mental Health Needs of Young Offenders
Forging Paths toward Reintegration and Rehabilitation
 , pp. 180 - 197
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2007

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  • Suicide and delinquent adolescents
    • By Amer Smajkic, Rush University Medical Center Marshall Field IV Building 1720 West Polk Street Chicago, IL 60612 USA, David C. Clark, Rush University Medical Center Armour Academic Center 600 Paulina Suite 529 Chicago, IL 60612 USA
  • Edited by Carol L. Kessler, Columbia University, New York, Louis James Kraus, Rush University, Chicago
  • Book: The Mental Health Needs of Young Offenders
  • Online publication: 11 August 2009
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511543913.009
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  • Suicide and delinquent adolescents
    • By Amer Smajkic, Rush University Medical Center Marshall Field IV Building 1720 West Polk Street Chicago, IL 60612 USA, David C. Clark, Rush University Medical Center Armour Academic Center 600 Paulina Suite 529 Chicago, IL 60612 USA
  • Edited by Carol L. Kessler, Columbia University, New York, Louis James Kraus, Rush University, Chicago
  • Book: The Mental Health Needs of Young Offenders
  • Online publication: 11 August 2009
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511543913.009
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To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Suicide and delinquent adolescents
    • By Amer Smajkic, Rush University Medical Center Marshall Field IV Building 1720 West Polk Street Chicago, IL 60612 USA, David C. Clark, Rush University Medical Center Armour Academic Center 600 Paulina Suite 529 Chicago, IL 60612 USA
  • Edited by Carol L. Kessler, Columbia University, New York, Louis James Kraus, Rush University, Chicago
  • Book: The Mental Health Needs of Young Offenders
  • Online publication: 11 August 2009
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511543913.009
Available formats
×