A social enterprise providing education and information to protect and enhance the mental health of young people
For most people, playing video games is a harmless hobby. For some people however, video games can become an obsession, leading to a number of addictive tendencies including the preference to play games rather then engaging in regular activities. Unfortunately there is a lack of reliable studies examining video game addiction and so little is [...]
We are still finding out the best way for parents to introduce alcohol to their children. At present, the results of research are often contradictory. On the one hand, there is research to suggest that parents can have a positive influence on their child’s drinking behaviour by allowing them small amounts of alcohol and trusting [...]
A 2006 US study found that 1 in 7 (13%) children had received a sexual solicitation or been approached online within the previous 12 months; 1 in 3 (34%) had unwanted exposure to pictures of naked people or people having sex; 1 in 11 (9%) were threatened or harassed; and 1 in 25 (4%) received [...]
Following a failed stunt with a lie detector on 2DayFM in which a 14-year-old girl revealed she had been raped, a group of 15 public figures have signed a press release calling for the program to be axed. The group, including psychologist Michael Carr-Gregg and Kids Free 2B Kids director Julie Gale, heavily criticised the [...]
Sydney radio DJ and former Australian Idol judge Kyle Sandilands has taken leave after an on-air stunt last week resulted in a 14-year-old girl publicly admitting she had been raped. The stunt was part of a competition whereby participants were subjected to a lie detector test in order to win tickets to a concert. Sandilands [...]
A new study by British researches has proven conclusively that using skunk cannabis can result in psychosis in healthy people. The study was carried out on 22 men in their late 20s who were injected with either the active component of skunk cannabis or a dummy placebo. The research team concluded: "These findings confirm that [...]
A third of children aged 8 to 12 use the internet on a daily basis and this figure rises to half for teenagers, while at least 90% of Australian homes with children have an internet connection. The top three most popular online activities for children are instant messaging, surfing, and email, and many children are [...]
It is vital you try to maintain a positive and open relationship with your child though the early years of high school. It’s not always going to be easy but the ability to communicate any concerns you may have about the activities they are involved with is essential. Children who feel they are able to [...]
Sexting has become a serious problem in our youth, with one study finding 69% of the teens they surveyed had sent a sext a girlfriend or boyfriend, so to help combat it the Australian Government has issued a fact sheet for parents to help their children avoid the dangers of sexting. The fact sheet contains [...]
There have been renewed calls for the government to move their focus away from censorship, this time with suggestions for the money to be diverted to better fund cyberbullying programs. The calls came from the Electronic Frontiers Australia, who said there was insufficient evidence to justify the costly proposed internet filter, instead calling bullying the [...]
