This correspondence responds to Afrin et al. (2026) by reflecting on the relevance of their findings for Indonesia. The original article is important because it shows that adolescent mental health problems in urban poverty should not be understood solely as individual disorders, but also as outcomes of accumulated psychosocial pressures within the family, school, and living environment. Drawing on the Indonesian context, this correspondence argues that adolescents in densely populated kampungs, informal settlements, and other poor urban settings experience similar forms of structural vulnerability, including economic insecurity, overcrowding, unsafe social environments, and unequal access to mental health services. It further highlights that Indonesia has begun to respond through family-based services, mental health and psychosocial support initiatives, legal reform, and social protection measures. However, the main challenge remains weak cross-sectoral integration across mental health, education, child protection, and social policy. Therefore, adolescent emotional and behavioral problems in poor urban areas should be understood as cumulative outcomes of inequality and inadequate protection, requiring stronger and more coordinated ecosystems of support.
Adawiah et al. (2026) studied this question.