Bullying Linked to Increased Suicide Attempts Among High School Students: JAMA

A new study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association showed that bullying is a significant risk factor for teenage suicidal behaviour, as seen by the more than 3-fold increased likelihood of suicide attempts among high school students who were bullied compared to their counterparts who were not.

Adolescents who experience bullying are more likely to become suicide. Bullying and suicide thoughts are more common among female teenagers. This study looked at school-based bullying and suicide attempts and evaluated modification by sex in order to identify teenagers at high risk for bullying-related suicide attempt.

Data from the 2023 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System, a school-based survey carried out in all 50 US states, were utilized in this cross-sectional research. STROBE criteria were adhered to, and the use of deidentified, publicly accessible data was categorized as nonhuman participant research. Bullying at school was the exposure, and the result was self-reported suicide attempts within the previous 12 months. Age, sex, color and ethnicity, sexual orientation, and gender identity were all taken into account in the models.

Associations were assessed using multivariable logistic regression, with analyses retaining missing variables. Using interaction terms and relative excess risk owing to interaction, effect measure modification by sex was assessed on multiplicative and additive scales, using men who were not bullied as the reference group. The threshold for statistical significance was fixed at P <.05. SAS Studio 3.81 was used for the analyses.

19.2% of 20,103 high school students (51.9% male; 51.3% aged 15–16) reported being bullied at school, and 9.5% reported having attempted suicide in the previous year. Younger kids, females, (lesbian, gay, bisexual, queer, and questioning [LGBQ+]) youth, and transgender people were more likely to experience bullying.

When compared to their classmates who were not bullied, bullied children exhibited greater adjusted odds of attempting suicide (AOR, 3.58; 95% CI, 2.95–4.34). Bullied females had the highest likelihood of attempting suicide (AOR, 5.65), followed by bullied men (AOR, 3.25) and nonbullied females (AOR, 1.50), according to additive effect modification by sex. 1.90 (95% CI, 0.55–3.24) was the elative excess risk due to interaction (RERI).

Overall, adolescent suicide attempts in the US are closely linked to bullying, and female pupils are disproportionately impacted. The increased attempt risk among female victims of bullying underscores a crucial vulnerability, even if male suicide mortality is greater. These results highlight the critical need for integrated, school-based treatments that focus on sex-specific risk factors while concurrently addressing bullying and adolescent mental health.

Source:

Agarwal, K. R., Fleary, S. A., Kreniske, P., & Teasdale, C. A. (2026). Bullying and suicide attempts among US high school students. JAMA Network Open, 9(1), e2552089. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2025.52089