Abstract
Background
While irritability is associated with poor psychosocial functioning and high use of mental health services, research in this area has predominantly focused on the US and the UK, leaving a significant gap in our understanding of its presentation among adolescents globally. This study explores cross-national aspects of adolescent irritability using self-report data, examining gender differences and associations with mental health symptoms, bullying, life satisfaction, and socioeconomic status.
Method
We utilized linear mixed-effects models to examine data from the Programme for International Student Assessment, analyzing a large sample (n = 56,324, 50.5% females) from nine countries: Bulgaria, Georgia, China, Ireland, Mexico, Panama, Serbia, Spain, and the United Arab Emirates. Adolescents' mean age was 15.81 years (SD: 0.29, range: 15.25–16.33).
Results
Irritability showed little variation across countries, with ~30.3% to 44.9% reporting ‘rarely or never’, ~10% reported daily irritability, and over 30% reporting irritability weekly. Females reported higher irritability than males (b = −0.46). Positive correlations were found between irritability and symptoms of depression. Associations with life satisfaction and bullying varied by country, with negative links in China and the United Arab Emirates, and stronger bullying links in China and Bulgaria. No significant associations were found with socioeconomic status.
Conclusions
We find consistency of adolescent irritability in nine large samples across diverse countries. Variations in the relationships between irritability, bullying, and life satisfaction underscore the influence of country-specific factors. These findings stress the importance of global mental health initiatives to address adolescent irritability effectively.
While irritability is associated with poor psychosocial functioning and high use of mental health services, research in this area has predominantly focused on the US and the UK, leaving a significant gap in our understanding of its presentation among adolescents globally. This study explores cross-national aspects of adolescent irritability using self-report data, examining gender differences and associations with mental health symptoms, bullying, life satisfaction, and socioeconomic status.
Method
We utilized linear mixed-effects models to examine data from the Programme for International Student Assessment, analyzing a large sample (n = 56,324, 50.5% females) from nine countries: Bulgaria, Georgia, China, Ireland, Mexico, Panama, Serbia, Spain, and the United Arab Emirates. Adolescents' mean age was 15.81 years (SD: 0.29, range: 15.25–16.33).
Results
Irritability showed little variation across countries, with ~30.3% to 44.9% reporting ‘rarely or never’, ~10% reported daily irritability, and over 30% reporting irritability weekly. Females reported higher irritability than males (b = −0.46). Positive correlations were found between irritability and symptoms of depression. Associations with life satisfaction and bullying varied by country, with negative links in China and the United Arab Emirates, and stronger bullying links in China and Bulgaria. No significant associations were found with socioeconomic status.
Conclusions
We find consistency of adolescent irritability in nine large samples across diverse countries. Variations in the relationships between irritability, bullying, and life satisfaction underscore the influence of country-specific factors. These findings stress the importance of global mental health initiatives to address adolescent irritability effectively.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 352-363 |
| Number of pages | 12 |
| Journal | Child and Adolescent Mental Health |
| Volume | 30 |
| Issue number | 4 |
| Early online date | 29 Jul 2025 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published online - 29 Jul 2025 |
Bibliographical note
Publisher Copyright:© 2025 Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health.
Data Access Statement
The PISA data used in this study is publicly accessible on the OECD website. Researchers can access the data-sets through the PISA data portal, with the option to download individual country data files. Please note that access to certain detailed student-level information may require a restricted-use data access application due to confidentiality requirementsKeywords
- Irritability
- adolescence
- developmental psychopatholgy
- depression
- developmental psychopathology
- Humans
- Male
- Personal Satisfaction
- Depression/epidemiology
- Bullying/statistics & numerical data
- Adolescent
- Sex Factors
- Female
- Adolescent Behavior
- Irritable Mood/physiology
