Depression Among Teens
Female students and lesbian, gay, and bisexual students were much more likely to experience symptoms of depression than the King County average.
In a survey of Washington public school students, 8th, 10th, and 12th graders were asked about whether at any time in the past year, they had felt so sad or hopeless almost every day for at least two weeks in a row that they stopped doing some usual activities. Having these feelings consistently can be an indication of depression, a common, serious and treatable disorder. In 2023, 25.4% of students in King County experienced these symptoms in the past year.
Gender: At 31.1%, female students were more likely than male students (17.3%) to experience symptoms of depression. Students who identified as transgender (52.6%), something else fits better (51.7%) and who were questioning their gender (52.7%) were almost twice as likely as King County average to experience depressive symptoms.
Sexual orientation: At 46.5%, lesbian, gay, and bisexual students were almost twice as likely to experience depressive symptoms as the county average. Students who responded that they were “not sure” of their sexual orientation were also more likely than the county average to experience depressive symptoms, at 35.6%.
Place: South Region students were most likely to experience symptoms of depression at 30.2%, which was higher than each of the other regions, which ranged from 20.0% in the East Region to 24.9% in the North Region.
Grade level: The percent of students experiencing symptoms of depression increased with grade level, ranging from 19.9% of 8th graders to 30.7% of 12th graders.
Race and ethnicity: Many students of color, including Hispanic/Latino (30.9%) and Multiple Race (29.2%) students, were more likely to experience symptoms of depression than the King County average. Asian students (21.5%) were less likely than the King County average to experience symptoms of depression. However, there were differences among Asian students by ethnic group, with students identifying as Filipino (34.1%) and Cambodian/Khmer (33.8%) having higher rates than the county average. There are numerous factors that impact mental health and emotional wellbeing in BIPOC communities. For further reading on this topic please see: Inside the pandemic: Two mental health workers and community volunteers discuss how cultural experiences and racial trauma affect mental health in BIPOC communities.
Trends: Rates of teen depression increased countywide between 2006 and 2021. The increase between 2008 (24.2%) and 2021 (36.8%)—was responsible for the overall upward trend. Recently, youth and young adults have experienced many disruptions due to COVID-19 and associated mitigation strategies. These include school closures and remote learning, social isolation, family financial hardship, and for some, the illness or death of a family member due to COVID-19. From 2018 to 2021 rates of teen depression increased countywide from 33.3% to 36.8%. Most recently in 2023 rates of teen depression declined steeply to 25.4%.
Additional Resources and Reading on this topic:
Notes and Sources
Source: Healthy Youth Survey. 2018-2023
Every 2 years, Washington public school students in 6th, 8th, 10th, and 12th grades answer questions about safety and violence, physical activity and diet, alcohol, tobacco and other drug use, and related risk and protective factors. To learn more about the survey, please go to https://www.doh.wa.gov/DataandStatisticalReports/DataSystems/HealthyYouthSurvey.
Numerator: Students who responded "Yes" to the question "During the past 12 months, did you ever feel so sad or hopeless almost every day for two weeks or more in a row that you stopped doing some usual activities?”
Denominator: All students who answered the question.
To learn more about the Healthy Youth Survey and view the data biography, click here.
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