Psychological Distress in Teen Years Tied to Later Economic Outcomes

THURSDAY, Jan. 16, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Psychological distress in adolescence is tied to economic outcomes 10 years later, according to a study published online Jan. 16 in PLOS Medicine.

Nathaniel Z. Counts, J.D., from the Kennedy Forum in Brigantine, New Jersey, and colleagues estimated the relationship between adolescent psychological distress (ages 15 to 17 years) and health and economic outcomes approximately 10 years later. The analysis included data from 3,343 individuals participating in the National Longitudinal Study of Youth 1997.

The researchers found that past-month clinically significant psychological distress in adolescence led to a 6 percentage-point reduction in past-year labor force participation 10 years later and $5,658 fewer past-year wages earned. A hypothetical policy that expands access to mental health preventive care and reaches 10 percent of youth who would otherwise develop clinically significant psychological distress could lead to an estimated $52 billion in federal budget benefits over 10 years from labor supply impacts alone.

“By estimating the offsetting budget impacts of policies that address adolescent mental health, policymakers will be better equipped to appropriately respond to the growing adolescent mental health crisis in the United States,” the authors write.

Abstract/Full Text