AFSP's mission is to reduce the national suicide rate by 20% by the year 2025. The organization aims to achieve this by focusing on the biological, psychological, social, and environmental factors known to contribute to the suicide burden in the United States.
The AFSP provides various grants aimed at understanding and preventing suicide. These grants support research into the causes of suicide, interventions and treatments to prevent suicide, and programs to educate the public and professionals about suicide prevention and to support those affected by suicide. Grants awarded to investigators at or below the level of assistant professor. These grants must allocate $14,000 ($7,000 per year) of their award for an established researcher to mentor the Early Career Researcher.