A social enterprise providing education and information to protect and enhance the mental health of young people
Penny Van Bergen, University of Wollongong Everyone knows a kid who cheats at Monopoly or backyard cricket. Perhaps they have even cheated on a test at school. If your notice your own child is doing this, you may worry they are headed for a life of crime. But in developmental terms, cheating is not usually [...]
Daryl Higgins, Australian Catholic University and Gabrielle Hunt, Australian Catholic University An ABC report on Monday revealed a concerning rise in peer-on-peer sexual abuse within Australian primary schools. Data on Victorian schools shows hundreds of such incidents were reported in 2022 and 2023, with many involving children under the age of ten. The Australian [...]
Australia has a dreadful reputation as the world’s leading country for per capita gambling losses. Pokies, sports betting, racing, lotteries, casinos and all the other gambling products took A$32 billion in 2022-23. That’s an average of $1555 from every adult, and it’s growing every year. Increasingly, we’re aware of effects of these losses: Family breakdown [...]
Yeslam Al-Saggaf, Charles Sturt University and Julie Maclean, Charles Sturt University Most Australian teenagers have their own smartphone. According to a 2023 survey, 91% of young people between 14 and 17 owned a phone. At the same time, there is huge community concern about young people being exposed to harms online – this includes the [...]
Susan Hazel, University of Adelaide Cats have lived with humans for thousands of years. And long before cat memes and viral TikToks took over the internet, they’ve been comforting us with their purrs and making us laugh with their weird antics. But what does the research say – are cats good for us? Living with [...]
John Sommers-Flanagan, University of Montana Uncommon Courses is an occasional series from The Conversation U.S. highlighting unconventional approaches to teaching. Title of Course Evidence-Based Happiness for Teachers What prompted the idea for the course? I was discouraged. For nearly three decades, as a clinical psychologist, I trained mental health professionals on suicide assessment. The work [...]
Judith Ireland, The Conversation and Matt Garrow, The Conversation The Albanese government has announced it will introduce a social media ban for children. The government has not yet nominated a minimum age but is trialling age-assurance mechanisms for those aged 13–16. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says the legislation will be introduced this year. This follows [...]
Michael Koch, Brunel University of London and Sarah Park, University of Leicester Emily, a finance manager, has been working 60-hour weeks for several months to meet deadlines. She starts feeling constantly exhausted, both physically and mentally. Work that she once found engaging now seems overwhelming, and she’s easily irritated with her colleagues. Despite putting [...]
Ian Gordon, The University of Melbourne; Mary P. Coupland, University of Technology Sydney, and Merrilyn Goos, University of the Sunshine Coast Imagine if you enrolled your child in swimming lessons but instead of a qualified swimming instructor, they were taught freestyle technique by a soccer coach. Something similar is happening in classrooms around Australia every [...]
Alison Bedford, University of Southern Queensland As Year 12 students begin term 3, they will be thinking increasingly about what to do next year. Throughout August, many universities have have open days as students investigate different courses and options for study. This is a significant time for young people as they navigate study pressures with [...]
