Teenage suicides are unspeakable tragedies, and they’re far from uncommon. According to government statistics, suicide is the second most common cause of death among 15- to 24-year-olds.
While psychologists and other counselors have done invaluable work to reduce this risk, new research finds a different group of professionals has had an enormous positive impact: state legislators.
It reports the suicide rate among high school students decreases significantly after a state law legalizing same-sex marriage goes into effect.
“These are high school students, so they aren’t getting married any time soon, for the most part,” lead author Julia Raifman of Johns Hopkins University said in announcing the findings. “Still, permitting same-sex marriage reduces structural stigma associated with sexual orientation. There may be something about having equal rights — even if they have no immediate plans to take advantage of them — that makes students feel less stigmatized and more hopeful for the future.”
[For more of this story, written by Tom Jacobs, go to https://psmag.com/why-do-teen-...7deedac79#.sd6do31fs]
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