A social enterprise providing education and information to protect and enhance the mental health of young people
Fiona McKay, Deakin University and Matthew Dunn, Deakin University More Australians than ever are vaping, according to recently released data. The National Drug Strategy Household Survey shows the proportion of Australians aged 14 and over who, in 2022–2023, said they currently vaped was 7%. In 2019 it was just 2.5%. Users are most likely [...]
Sara Goldstein, University of Delaware Curious Kids is a series for children of all ages. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, send it to curiouskidsus@theconversation.com. Why are bullies so mean? – Daisy, age 9, Lake Oswego, Oregon Being bullied can make your life miserable, and decades of research prove it: [...]
Nina Van Dyke, Victoria University and Fiona MacDonald, Victoria University As children return to classrooms for 2024, school communities will be confronting bullying in person and via technology. In-person bullying and cyberbullying affect significant numbers of children and young people in Australia and around the world. The eSafety Commission recently revealed a 40% jump in [...]
Download article as a PDF Motivation is a slippery customer. Just when you want to rely on it, it puts its feet up, takes a few days off & generally wants to be about as active as a sloth on long service leave. Your ‘get up & go’ has ‘got up & gone’. A Brief [...]
Megan Lim, Burnet Institute Unlike in previous generations, you’re unlikely to discover your adolescent’s first exposure to adult sexual content from finding a scrunched-up Playboy magazine under their mattress. With easy access to the internet and the use of tablets and mobile phones, it’s more likely to be from free, mainstream online porn. And it [...]
Trevor Mazzucchelli, Curtin University Parents may be familiar with this scenario: a child is well behaved at school and polite to their teachers but has a meltdown at home in the afternoon. Or they say please and thank you at a friend’s house but are rude with their family. They follow the rules if they [...]
Jamilla Rosdahl, Australian College of Applied Psychology A new trend taking over TikTok is targeting vulnerable young men. The “looksmaxxing” phenomenon – to maximise one’s looks – is aimed at young men and boys who want to change their appearance to become more attractive and gain social acceptance. Unhappy with their appearance, teenage boys and [...]
Deborah Lupton, UNSW Sydney This is the final article in The Conversation’s six-part series on insomnia, which charts the rise of insomnia during industrialisation to sleep apps today. Read other articles in the series here. Insomnia is not just a personal issue that affects an individual’s health and wellbeing. It’s a public health issue, affecting [...]
Joanne Orlando, Western Sydney University A war has erupted around young people’s use social media and it is messy. In the United States, surgeon general Vivek Murthy has recommended cigarette packet-like warnings for platforms like Instagram to remind teens and parents social media “has not proved safe”. In Australia, Opposition Leader Peter Dutton says he [...]
Jenny Gore, University of Newcastle and Drew Miller, University of Newcastle Australian schools are facing unsustainable pressures. There are almost daily reports of too many students falling behind and not enough teachers to teach them. Meanwhile, the teachers we do have are stressed, overworked and lack adequate support in the classroom. Governments are well aware [...]
