Examining 25 Years of Research Trends in Adolescent Suicide: A Bibliometric Analysis

Introduction: Suicide is a growing public health concern among adolescents worldwide. While many young people transition into healthy adulthood, adolescence remains a period of increased vulnerability for mental health. This study aims to examine scientific research on adolescent suicide and to analyze the major trends that have shaped the field over the past two decades. Methods: Data were retrieved from the Web of Science (WoS) database. One thousand five hundred twenty-seven articles published between 2000 and 2024 with the keywords “suicide” and “adolescent/adolescents/adolescence” in their titles, and indexed in SSCI or SCI-E, were included. Network and cluster analyses were conducted using VOSviewer software. Results: Publications on adolescent suicide have increased steadily, peaking in 2023 with over 150 articles. Nearly 6,000 researchers from more than 1,900 institutions contributed, and articles originated from 84 countries across 450 journals. Collectively, the publications received over 50,000 citations, averaging 35 per article. Keyword analysis identified more than 2,000 distinct terms, with “adolescent,” “suicide,” and “suicide attempt” most frequent. Research trends emphasize the identification of risk factors, the prediction of suicidal behaviors, and longitudinal investigations of the post-pandemic period. Discussion: The findings revealed a thematic evolution, with a shift from descriptive studies toward predictive and interdisciplinary approaches. Technological advances, particularly machine learning and predictive models, increasingly shape research directions. Reliance on a single database is recognized as a limitation. Conclusion: This bibliometric analysis provides a comprehensive overview of adolescent suicide research. The findings highlight the thematic evolution of the field and offer valuable insights to guide future scholarly work.