A social enterprise providing education and information to protect and enhance the mental health of young people
By Naomi Barnes, Queensland University of Technology The central role of schools in the Brisbane COVID-19 outbreak means the virus might move through the community differently from previous outbreaks. Previously, the focus has been on the spread of the virus through the aged care sector and via service workers. People in education systems move and [...]
By Nicole (Nikki) Brunker, University of Sydney Adding to the clamour of argument over whether schools should be open to all during lockdown is confusion in terminology. Using the term “home schooling” to describe schooling during lockdown is disrespectful to both teachers and home schoolers. Home schooling requires parents to seek registration for their child [...]
By Margaret Kristin Merga, Edith Cowan University Parents at a loss to find activities for their children during COVID lockdowns can encourage them to escape into a book. New research shows how reading books can help young people escape from their sources of stress, find role models in characters and develop empathy. Recent media reports have [...]
“Stranger danger” has always been the go-to parenting mantra to let kids know to be careful with people they don’t know, especially if the “stranger” behaves inappropriately. The stereotype was the bad man in a van picking up vulnerable children off the street. But, as disturbing new research conducted at the Victorian Forensic Paediatric Medical [...]
This article is based on research carried out by Jane Fisher, Karin Hammarberg, Maggie Kirkman, Thach Tran, Heather Rowe, Jayagowri Sastry, Ruby Stocker, Hau Nguyen, and Sally Popplestone, on behalf of the Monash COVID-19 Mental Health Research Group, Global and Women’s Health Unit, School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine. As millions of Australians adapt [...]
Dr Simon De Deyne and Professor Nick Haslam Mental health and wellbeing are in our cultural spotlight as never before. The psychological toll of the COVID-19 pandemic has been front of mind for the past year, but that concern is superimposed on others that preceded it. The distinction between mental health and wellbeing is compelling. [...]
Susan Collings, University of Sydney; Irene Wardle, University of Sydney, and John Gilroy, University of Sydney Quotes in this research are from participants who cannot be named due to research ethics requirements. Pandemic-induced lockdowns have provided stories of both hardship and resilience. This extends to families in the community caring for children in out-of-home care, [...]
Suku Sukunesan, Swinburne University of Technology There’s no shortage of people online looking to exploit and manipulate the vulnerable among us. One such group is anorexia coaches, or “anacoaches”. They are typically middle-aged, male sexual predators who go online to find impressionable young people to exploit under the guise of providing weight-loss “coaching”. I have [...]
Dr Andi Horvath and Professor Sarah Wilson The COVID-19 pandemic has caused uncertainty and stress for so many university students. So how can universities support and reach out to students? And how do students build up their resilience? Professor Sarah Wilson is the Pro Vice-Chancellor Student Life at the University of Melbourne and an internationally [...]
Dr Niels Wouters and Professor Jeannie Marie Paterson With more than one billion users since 2017, TikTok is one of the fastest-growing social networks. Its audience base is rapidly expanding beyond Gen Z’s early adopters, now including boomers and retirees. Despite its growth, TikTok has been unable to stop a stream of rumours and leaks. [...]
