Highlights in child mental health research: November 2025

This month’s highlights include:

Social-emotional development of refugee and non-refugee children of mothers exposed to intimate partner violence

This study examined social-emotional development in Australian children whose mothers experienced intimate partner violence. Four risk patterns for developing socio-emotional challenges were identified: none/low, declining, intermittent and high increasing risk. Physical violence, social and economic hardship, and maternal education were identified as risk factors. Refugee status was not linked to a higher risk of socio-emotional challenges. Support programs can address social factors that impact children’s development after intimate partner violence.

Health service and productivity costs of child maltreatment in Australia

This study analysed data from over 8,500 Australians to estimate the economic impact of child maltreatment. It found that maltreatment was linked to an additional $21.6 billion in health service costs and $24.1 billion in productivity losses annually. Individuals with maltreatment histories had higher health costs and unemployment-related losses. Findings highlight that early intervention to prevent maltreatment may reduce long-term health and economic costs.

Comprehensive strategies for preventing suicide in adolescents

This review examined adolescent suicide risk and prevention. Risk factors included mental health challenges, substance use, family conflict, bullying and social pressures. Protective factors included family and peer support, positive school environments and coping skills. Effective strategies included therapy, psychoeducation, family-based interventions and school programs. The review highlights the need for coordinated approaches that involve families, schools, health services and communities. Translating knowledge on prevention into scalable interventions remains challenging.

Early intervention for common mental health problems in young people

This review analysed early intervention models for young people with symptoms of anxiety, depression or other common mental health issues. These models were found to improve access to care and reduce waiting times, with short-term benefits for mental health and wellbeing. Young people also found them more acceptable than usual care. Scaling up these models may help to prevent severe mental health problems, but more research is needed.

Why is this important?

• Children of mothers who experience intimate partner violence are at increased risk of experiencing social and emotional challenges. However, the specific risk patterns and contributing factors are not well understood.
• Understanding how social, economic and cultural factors interact with intimate partner violence can help identify which children are most at risk and inform targeted support.

What did they do?

• The authors analysed data from 870 Australian mother–child pairs from the Women Aware with Their Children (WATCH) cohort study. Half of the participants were from refugee families.
• They used a statistical method called group-based trajectory modelling to examine the children’s social-emotional development from ages 18 months to five years.
• Group-based trajectory modelling can be used to identify groups of people who follow similar patterns or pathways over time. It helps to provide insights on how different groups change or develop.
• Social-emotional development was measured using the Ages & Stages Questionnaires: Social-Emotional (ASQ:SE-2). The questionnaire asked about children’s behaviours and emotions at different ages and was conducted annually.

What did they find?

• Four risk trajectory groups were identified: none/low risk (82%), declining risk (8%), intermittent risk (7%) and high increasing risk of social-emotional challenges (3%).
• Mothers’ exposure to physical intimate partner violence (with or without psychological abuse) significantly increased the odds of children being in the intermittent or high increasing risk groups.
• Children in the highest risk group were more likely to be male, have mothers born in Australia, have no tertiary education and to be experiencing social and economic difficulties.
• Refugee status was not associated with higher risk trajectories. Social and economic factors were more strongly linked to social-emotional challenges than either maternal mental health or refugee background.

What does this mean for practice?

• Regardless of refugee status, prevention and early intervention efforts to reduce intimate partner violence will likely have benefits for child development.
• Practitioners should be aware that social factors such as education, financial stress and social isolation are key factors for children’s development in the context of intimate partner violence and can be addressed through relevant support programs and initiatives.

Why is this important?

• Child maltreatment is a major public health issue in Australia that can lead to long-term impacts on physical and mental health.
• Understanding the health care costs associated with child maltreatment is crucial for informing public policy. However, previous estimates have often been based on international data.

What did they do?

• The authors analysed cross-sectional data (i.e. data that is collected from participants at one specific time point) from 8,503 Australians aged 16 years and over from the Australian Child Maltreatment Study (ACMS).
• They compared the health service use and costs, and calculated productivity losses due to unemployment, between those with and without child maltreatment.

What did they find?

• At a population level, child maltreatment was associated with $21.6 billion in extra health service costs and $24.1 billion in productivity losses each year.
• People who experienced child maltreatment had annual health service costs that were $1,670 higher per person than those without child maltreatment.
• Productivity losses due to unemployment averaged $2,750 per labour force participant who had a history of child maltreatment each year.
• Costs increased with the number of maltreatment types experienced; they were highest for those who experienced neglect, sexual, or emotional abuse. A large share of health service costs was for mental health services.

What does this mean for practice?

• The ACMS provides insights into the pervasiveness of child maltreatment in Australia and its significant health service and productivity costs. The findings may be used to advocate for more early intervention services or programs to address child maltreatment.
• This provides a strong economic argument for investment in early intervention programs to prevent child maltreatment and reduce its impacts on people’s health and wellbeing.

Why is this important?

• Suicide is one of the leading causes of death among adolescents worldwide. Suicide among adolescents also has serious impacts on their families and communities.
• Barriers to effectively preventing suicide among adolescents can include the stigmatisation of poor mental health and a lack of access to mental health services. This highlights the need for new and comprehensive prevention strategies for preventing youth suicide.

What did they do?

• The authors conducted a narrative review (i.e. a review that doesn’t follow a strict systematic process or method) of research evidence examining risk and protective factors for suicide, interventions or prevention strategies for adolescents (aged 10 to 19 years).
• They included studies published in English any time before March 2025.
• The authors found 40 studies that met the inclusion criteria for their review, which they analysed qualitatively.

What did they find?

• Factors that were associated with an increased risk of suicide in adolescents included individual factors (e.g. depression, anxiety, substance use, trauma and self-harm), family and peer relationships (e.g. conflict, neglect and bullying) and broader social issues (e.g. poverty, academic pressure and limited access to mental health care).
• Factors that were protective against suicide in adolescents included strong family support, positive peer relationships, supportive school environments and individual coping skills.
• The authors found that the following strategies may help prevent suicide among adolescents: cognitive behavioural therapy; dialectical behaviour therapy; psychoeducation; skill-building programs (e.g. mindfulness-based interventions); family-based interventions that improve communication and mental health literacy; and schools with social-emotional learning programs, anti-bullying policies and mental health services.
• There is limited research evidence on the effectiveness of interventions in real-world settings. There is also limited evidence on effective prevention strategies for adolescents facing structural inequalities, such as poverty, discrimination, chronic illness or community violence.

What does this mean for practice?

• Preventing suicide in adolescents requires a coordinated approach involving families, schools, health services, and communities.
• Practitioners working with adolescents can consider screening for early risk factors, supporting whole families, and building resilience and coping skills in adolescents.
• Although there is promising evidence of effective prevention strategies, there are significant challenges in translating this knowledge into scalable interventions in service and community settings.

Why is this important?

• Many mental health problems begin during adolescence or early adulthood. Additionally, rates of anxiety and depression in young people are increasing.
• Early intervention can prevent mental health problems from becoming more severe and can improve social, educational and employment outcomes for young people with mental health problems.

What did they do?

• The authors conducted a systematic review (i.e. a type of high-quality review with a structured and transparent method) of early intervention programs for young people (aged 11 to 25 years) with early symptoms of anxiety, depression or other common mental health challenges.
• The authors focused on studies examining complex interventions involving multiple components rather than simple interventions (examples of simple interventions include Cognitive Behavioural Therapy or pharmacological interventions). These complex interventions are referred to as ‘early intervention models’.
• The early intervention models were generally targeted at the level of a whole care team or organisation rather than individual practitioners. They could include innovations in service organisation or structure, pathways to access or how care is delivered. They are usually intended to improve access, engagement and outcomes through earlier or more integrated care.
• They found 38 studies (43 individual publications), which they analysed using narrative synthesis (i.e. a descriptive, qualitative approach to summarising or explaining the findings of multiple studies).

What did they find?

• Early intervention models improved access to mental health support and reduced waiting times for young people, especially in the short term. This was associated with quicker access to psychiatrists and lower emergency department use for some young people.
• These models were also associated with improvements in mental health and wellbeing compared to usual care. However, when long term outcomes were measured in studies (up to 18 months in one study), these effects were only seen for six to 12 months after the intervention.
• Young people generally found these models more acceptable and satisfying than usual care.
• Promising characteristics of early intervention included: multi-component or ‘joined up’ service designs (where clinical care was combined with practical supports), rapid and flexible access, youth-friendly and routine monitoring, and feedback about the service experience.
• There was mixed evidence on the impact of these models for social outcomes (e.g. housing, education, employment). Some models improved employment or reduced offending, but others showed no difference compared to usual care.
• It’s currently unknown whether these models are cost effective. Only one study examined cost effectiveness, finding that the model was more cost effective than standard psychiatric care.

What does this mean for practice?

• Practitioners and service managers should consider implementing early intervention services to young people who have early signs of mental health difficulty.
• Early intervention supports that are flexible, joined up and youth friendly may help some young people access care sooner and improve mental health outcomes.