A new report from The Australia Institute has found young Australians’ mental health has declined sharply.
The decline coincides with increased economic pressure faced young Australians, especially around housing, education, health costs and income support.
Since 2001, tertiary education fees have increased by 150%, rent and out-of-pocket medical expenses have doubled, while minimum wage rose by 19% and Youth Allowance by just 10%.
Key points:
- The proportion of young people reporting a mental health disorder rose from 26.4% in 2007 to 38.8% in 2022.
- The decline among young people is far higher than that reported by older cohorts.
- Financial stress and labour-market insecurity are linked to poorer mental health.
- Clinical services alone cannot fix preventable economic stress; Improving economic conditions is a far more efficient and effective way to protect young people’s mental health.
The report points to evidence linking financial stress with anxiety, depression and other mental health challenges, and notes that unemployment, underemployment, job insecurity and low job control are associated with poorer mental health.
“Young Australians are not just feeling a bit worse – the data show a sustained and substantial decline in mental health,” said Luke Slawomirski, Senior Postdoctoral Research Fellow at The Australia Institute.
“Australia’s youth mental health crisis is not occurring in an economic vacuum.
“Young people are being asked to build a life on income supports that have barely moved, while the costs of rent, study and healthcare have surged.
“A secure job, affordable rent, and enough income to live on are not separate from mental health – they are part of the conditions that protect it.
“More mental health services are needed, but they cannot compensate for policies that make young people’s lives more precarious.”
“Understanding the relationship between economic conditions and youth mental health is critical to informing future policy that supports young people’s mental health and wellbeing,” said Dr David Baker, Head of Policy at the Orygen Policy Centre.
“We need to be doing more for young people, and that includes addressing intergenerational inequality.”
