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Transforming the understanding
and treatment of mental illnesses.

Progress for Goal 2

Learn about the progress NIMH has made toward Goal 2 of the NIMH Strategic Plan for Research: Examine Mental Illness Trajectories Across the Lifespan.


Using Mobile Technology to Improve Care for Teens with Depression
Smartphone Data May Not Reliably Predict Depression Risk in Diverse Groups

NIMH-supported research suggests AI tools built on smartphone data may struggle to predict clinical outcomes like depression in large and diverse groups of people.

Pensive preteen looking out though window.
Increases Found in Preteen Suicide Rate

Researchers at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) found that rates of preteen suicide (ages 8-12) have been increasing by approximately 8% annually since 2008.

A smiling parent sits in an exam room holding her happy child and talking with a health care provider
Accelerating Science to Improve Early Autism Screening

Persistent, collective efforts in the research community show how making early autism screening part of routine health care can support the well-being of children and families.

Group of diverse people without faces, several of whom are grayed out.
Disparities in Psychotic Disorder Diagnoses and Other Negative Health Outcomes

NIMH researchers found racial and ethnic disparities in rates of psychotic disorders, which were associated with co-occurring medical conditions and negative health outcomes.

Worried pregnant woman sitting at home with protective face mask, looking through the window and holding stomach.
Combined, High Maternal Stress and Prenatal COVID-19 Infection May Affect Attention Span in Infants

Prenatal COVID-19 infection increased the risk for impaired attention and delayed socioemotional and cognitive functioning among infants of mothers who experienced high psychosocial stress during their pregnancy.

A mother tightly hugging her young daughter.
Mothers' Difficult Childhoods Impact Their Children’s Mental Health

In this NIMH-funded study, researchers examined how trauma gets passed from one generation to the next.

Illustration of a group of young people of different genders, races, and ethnicities standing in a row and wearing face masks.
Youth Suicide Rates Increased During the COVID-19 Pandemic

In one of the first studies to examine national youth suicide rates during the COVID-19 pandemic, researchers showed that the pandemic increased youth suicide rates and the impact varied by sex, age, and race and ethnicity.

Pregnant woman holds her baby bump while a therapist in the background takes notes.
Population Study Finds Depression Is Different Before, During, and After Pregnancy

New NIMH-funded research tracked population-level rates of postpartum depression among new mothers before, during, and after pregnancy.

A smiling parent sits in an exam room holding her happy child and talking with a health care provider
Infants’ Health Record Data May Improve Early Autism Screening

Research supported by NIMH suggests that children’s health records may yield some promising insights that could improve the accuracy of early autism screening.

Toddlers playing with blocks
Attention to Geometric Images May Offer Biomarker for Some Toddlers with Autism

An NIMH-supported study shows that preference for geometric images may be robust enough to serve as a biomarker for identifying some young children with autism.

Diverse group of adolescents standing together while wearing face masks.
COVID-19 Pandemic Associated With Worse Mental Health and Accelerated Brain Development in Adolescents

An NIMH-supported study suggests that adolescents living through the COVID-19 pandemic may be experiencing more anxiety and depression symptoms and accelerated brain aging.

A father and son sitting on a park bench.
Family-Based Intervention Lowers Long-Term Suicide Risk in Youth

In a recent study supported by the National Institute of Mental Health, researchers examined the impact of a family-based intervention on suicide risk in youth and found risk-reduction benefits up to 10 years later.

Abstract image of program code being analyzed
Computational Methods Identify Psychosis Symptoms in Spoken Language

Researchers used computational methods to automatically detect abnormalities in spoken language that could be used to predict symptoms of psychotic disorders including schizophrenia.

Father sitting and talking to his toddler
Toddlers’ Responses to “Baby Talk” Linked to Social, Cognitive, Language Abilities

In an NIMH-supported study, researchers found that toddlers respond to emotionally expressive speech in different ways, and these varied responses are linked with their social, linguistic, and cognitive abilities.

Young child resting against a swing
Low Motivation for Social Bonding May Signal Behavior Problems in Early Childhood

In an NIMH-supported study, researchers found that low social affiliation—low motivation for social engagement and bonding—may be a precursor that identifies children as early as age 2 who are likely to develop callous-unemotional behaviors.

A teen (in background) pushes away a plate with broccoli on it (in foreground).
Adult “Picky Eaters” Recall Helpful Parent Feeding Strategies

Researchers asked a group of self-identified adult “picky eaters” to reflect on their parents’ feeding strategies to better understand which strategies were helpful and which weren’t.

Photograph of a man staring straight ahead with the sides of his face blurry and out of focus
Feelings of Detachment After Trauma May Signal Worse Mental Health Outcomes

A new NIMH-supported study shows that experiencing persistent feelings of detachment following trauma is an early psychological and biological marker of worse mental health outcomes.

Kids in classroom raising hands.
Study Furthers Understanding of Disparities in School Discipline

A new NIMH-supported analysis shows that disciplinary disparities occur as early as preschool and that their effects can negatively influence how well students do in later years.

A close-up view of an adult man’s face and eye
Machine Learning Study Sheds Light on Gaze Patterns in Adults With Autism

NIMH researchers examine what people with ASD and people without ASD look at when viewing a social scene.

Adolescent male looking out a window
Persistent, Distressing Psychotic-like Experiences Associated with Impairment in Youth

In this NIMH-funded study, researchers examined the association between distressing and persistent psychotic-like experiences in youth and important risk factors for psychopathology.

illustration of human brain seen from above
Brain Activity Patterns After Trauma May Predict Long-Term Mental Health

The way a person’s brain responds to stress following a traumatic event, such as a car accident, may help to predict their long-term mental health outcomes, according to NIMH-supported research.

line drawing illustration of human brain
Mapping ‘Imbalance’ in Brain Anatomy Across the Lifespan

Researchers in the NIMH Intramural Research Program have developed a new way to measure the degree to which the proportions of an individual person’s brain differ from the proportions typically seen in the broader population. This technique yields new insights into brain development and offers tools for further study.

a young woman looks pensively out a window
Study Identifies Risk Factors for Elevated Anxiety in Young Adults During COVID-19 Pandemic

A new study has identified early risk factors that predicted heightened anxiety in young adults during the coronavirus pandemic.

outline art of male and female human figures
NIMH Part of Collaborative Effort to Advance Early Intervention for Individuals at Risk of Developing Schizophrenia

NIMH has joined with other NIH Institutes in launching an new Accelerating Medicines Partnership focused on advancing the development of better ways to identify and treat those at clinical high risk for psychosis.

residential street with bright street lights at dusk
Outdoor Light Linked with Teens’ Sleep and Mental Health

A large-scale study of U.S. teens shows associations between outdoor, artificial light at night and health outcomes.

Transforming Mental Health Care Through ALACRITY
Transforming Mental Health Care Through ALACRITY

In 2018, 11.4 million adults in the United States experienced a serious mental illness, such as schizophrenia-spectrum disorders, severe bipolar disorder, and severe depression.

Combined Electroconvulsive Therapy and Venlafaxine a Well-Tolerated Depression Treatment for Older Adults
Combined Electroconvulsive Therapy and Venlafaxine a Well-Tolerated Depression Treatment for Older Adults

The use of right unilateral ultrabrief pulse (RUL-UB) electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) in combination with the antidepressant venlafaxine to treat depression in elderly patients is well tolerated and results in minimal neurocognitive side effects, according to a new NIH-funded study published in the American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry.

Using Technology to Help Predict Binge and Purge Episodes in People with Eating Disorders
Using Technology to Help Predict Binge and Purge Episodes in People with Eating Disorders

In binge-eating disorder and bulimia nervosa, people experience recurrent and frequent episodes in which they eat unusually large amounts of food and feel a sense of loss of control.

Identifying Practices for Reducing Incarceration of Those with Mental Illnesses—A Study of “Stepping Up”
Identifying Practices for Reducing Incarceration of Those with Mental Illnesses—A Study of “Stepping Up”

According to a 2017 report by the Bureau of Justice Statistics, approximately two-thirds of female inmates in prisons and jails and around a third of men in prisons and jails report having been diagnosed as having mental health disorder by a mental health professional.