Research, mainly conducted in Europe and North America, has shown an inequitable burden of internalising mental health problems among adolescents from poorer households. Using data from the Young Lives longitudinal study in Ethiopia, India, Peru and Vietnam, as well as data from longitudinal studies in Australia, Mexico, South Africa and the UK, this report investigates whether these mental health inequalities differ across a diverse range of countries and multiple measures of economic circumstances.

The report suggests that economic inequalities in adolescents’ mental health are prevalent in many but not all countries and vary by the economic measure considered. Variation in the magnitude of inequalities suggests that the wider context within countries plays an important role in the development of these inequalities.

Read the open access article on The Lancet Psychiatry (Volume 11, Issue 11, p890-898, November 2024)