This study explores the possibility that social support among adolescents explains the relationship between emotional competence and help seeking. Results reveal that adolescents who were low in emotional awareness, and who were poor at identifying, describing, and managing their emotions, were the least likely to seek help from nonprofessional…

Home safety survey of 1050 Australian households investigated home injury risk profile and knowledge, beliefs and attitudes regarding home safety. Found the United Kingdom's "Six Es" for preventing child accidents useful as a planning strategy: Education, Engineering, Enforcement, Environment, Evaluation, Enthusiasm. Found home-by-home…

Surveys employees (N=4,979) of an Australian state railway to determine self-reported employee alcohol use and the influence of work-related risk factors on this use. Examination of risk factors previously associated with work-related problem drinking showed that gender, nights away from home for work, job satisfaction, and availability of alcohol…

This study's data were collected by telephone and written questionnaires from 15- to 24-year-olds, the age reported to be at high risk for disorders such as depression. The survey revealed that of those contacted, one in four females and one in eight males reported high levels of depressive symptomatology. One in three had suicidal thoughts at…

Young people who experience homelessness, in Australia and in other western contexts (US, Canada, England), are widely perceived to use and abuse alcohol and drugs. The available research indicates that homeless young people use all drug types, whether injected or otherwise, more frequently than their home-based peers. Debate exists in the…

This article overviews prevention and early intervention approaches focusing specifically on their relevance to the health of children and young people in Australia. Australian public health has a sound track record although concealed within the aggregate profile are a number of sub-populations with poorer health indicators. Recognition of this…

Refugee families in Australia generally have a dual challenge--dealing with past traumatic experiences while facing the struggles of integrating with a new and unfamiliar society. For children and their families who have experienced war-related trauma and disruption, the resettlement process is being referred to as "secondary trauma" to…

An Importance of Goals Scale was developed from item responses of 230 Australian high school students and validated through administration to 80 delinquent, 90 at-risk, and 90 non-at-risk adolescents. Findings identified differences among the three groups, which are discussed in terms of implications for academic achievement, peer relations, and…

Investigated effects of 3 routine classroom arithmetic and reading tasks upon the heart rate reactivity of 30 fifth grade children. Results indicated that some children showed large increases in heart rates during the three tasks, and that these children should be considered at risk for coronary heart disease. (Author/TE)

This paper provides background information about the Project Hahn adventure-based program and its ongoing involvement with the Port Arthur Recovery Group to assist 42 adolescents directly affected by the murders of 36 people by a lone gunman in Tasmania in 1996. Case studies relate personal, social, and community issues faced by these adolescents,…

Much research has focused on the concept of resilience, which is defined as the process of, capacity for, or outcome of successful adaptation despite challenging circumstances. To examine resilience in school children, small group interviews were conducted with 9-12 year-old children (N=125) drawn from five primary schools in South Australia. The…

This paper discusses the lack of attention that has been given by helping professionals, police, welfare systems, and legal systems concerning the sexual assault of adults who are intellectually disabled, with special emphasis on the situation in New South Wales, Australia. Reasons why people with intellectual disability are particularly…

Adolescents comprise a substantial proportion of the at-risk population for sexually transmissible diseases (STD's) and AIDS. This study examines the link between sexuality education programs and student receptivity in Western Australian secondary schools. The researchers ask the question, "Given the same exposure to similar content and…

This study examined motor, academic, and behavioral performance of 38 nine-year-old Australian children who had been described as biologically "at-risk" from neonatal conditions. In addition to individual tests taken by subjects, school progress questionnaires were administered to teachers and parents. Subjects were found to require a…

Pre- and postvoyage interviews with seven participants on a 10-day adventure trip aboard the sail training ship Leeuwin revealed that the experience met the expectations of most participants and that participants experienced increases in self-confidence, self-esteem, motivation, and tolerance. Suggests that prevoyage briefing, postvoyage…