Young Australians aged 16 to 25 are attempting to kill themselves, self-harming and experiencing suicidal thoughts in greater numbers and at earlier ages than previous generations, a landmark study has found.
It comes as Kids Helpline data provided exclusively to Guardian Australia shows the proportion of young children experiencing suicidality is increasing at “alarming” rates and being expressed by children as young as six.
Research led by Dr Katrina Witt from the University of Melbourne and the youth mental health hub Orygen analysed data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics’ National Study of Mental Health and Wellbeing, 2020-2022.
The 14,753 respondents were grouped into generation Z (16-25 years), millennials (26-41 years), generation X (42-57 years) and baby boomers (58-76 years).
“Generation Z had the highest hazards for youth suicidal ideation, planning, self-harm, and suicide attempts, with the youngest age of onset,” found the study, published in the Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry on Monday.
Risk factors for these behaviours differed between generations.
For gen Z, witnessing parental violence and being exposed to suicide among peers, family or online were particularly strong predictors of self-harm and suicide attempts.
“While policies aimed at reducing harmful online content could help mitigate exposure to self-harm and suicide-related behaviours, they should form part of a broader, multi-faceted prevention strategy,” the study found.
In older generations, childhood sexual abuse, substance use disorders and long periods of untreated mental illness were more strongly linked to suicidal behaviour.
Witt told Guardian Australia there was “no single cause” driving suicidality among young people. The association with mental ill health and suicide was less strong than for previous generations, making it important to consider policy responses outside traditional health settings, she said.
“Generation Z has grown up in a period marked by rapid social change, and there’s constant digital connectivity,” she said. “They’re experiencing economic insecurity, climate anxiety, and of course the disruptive effects of Covid-19 on their social and emotional development.”
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Nieves Murray, the chief executive of Suicide Prevention Australia, said the research highlighted what many families, schools and frontline services had already observed: “Gen Z is facing pressures that are both different from, and in many cases more acute than, previous generations.”
Across all ages, 17.3% of respondents reported ever having suicidal thoughts, 7.7% had made a suicide plan, 9.2% had self-harmed and 5.1% had attempted suicide. Among generation Z, the proportions were higher: 20.2% reported suicidal thoughts, 9.2% had made a plan, 20.4% had self-harmed and 6% had attempted suicide.
Younger and younger children seeking help
Tracy Adams is the chief executive of Yourtown, which manages Kids Helpline, a free and confidential counselling service for five- to 25-year-olds. She said the study led by Witt reflected Kids Helpline data, which showed 11% of 10-year-olds who contacted the service in 2025 reported concerns related to suicide, compared with 4% in 2012.
In 2012, 3% of 11-year-olds discussed suicidality with Kids Helpline, rising to 15% by 2025.
“Every year, we’re seeing younger children reaching out in crisis,” Adams said. “In 2024, the youngest child to receive support concerning a suicide attempt was just six years old.”
Adams said the average age of young people needing crisis support for suicide attempts had dropped from 24 in 2012 to just 16 in 2025.
“This downward shift is alarming,” she said. “It tells us that suicide-related distress is reaching children far earlier than ever before.
“These are not just numbers. These are children trying to survive overwhelming pain.”
Witt said early intervention was critical.
“We need programs in schools and communities that reach young people where they live and learn, before the onset of suicidal thinking develops,” she said.
“We need resources to help recognise and respond to distress, and to support parents and reduce conflict within the home. And we need safe online and offline spaces, by investing in the environments where young people connect, develop their identity and can access safe support.”
In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14 or Kids Helpline is 1800 55 1800. In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted on freephone 116 123, or email jo@samaritans.org or jo@samaritans.ie. In the US, you can call or text the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on 988, chat on 988lifeline.org, or text HOME to 741741 to connect with a crisis counsellor. Other international helplines can be found at befrienders.org
