Prevalence and correlates of psychotic experiences in a nationally representative sample of Australian adolescents.

Objective: Despite growing literature on psychotic experiences, no nationally representative study has reported on the prevalence of both hallucinatory experiences and delusional experiences in Australian adolescents. Also, while many studies have examined the association between psychotic experiences and certain demographic and clinical correlates, there are more variables of interest to be investigated, including disordered eating behaviour and hours of sleep. The aims of this study were to examine (1) the prevalence of hallucinatory experiences and delusional experiences in Australian adolescents, and (2) the associations between different types of psychotic experiences with a broad range of demographic, clinical, and psychosocial variables.

Prevalence and correlates of bullying victimisation and perpetration in a nationally representative sample of Australian youth.

Objective: Bullying prevalence studies are limited by varied measurement methods and a lack of representative samples. This study estimated the national prevalence of bullying victimisation, perpetration and combined victim-perpetration experiences in a representative population-based sample of Australian youth. The relationships between the three types of bullying involvement with a range of mental health symptoms and diagnoses were also examined.

Internet use and electronic gaming by children and adolescents with emotional and behavioural problems in Australia - results from the second Child and Adolescent Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing.

Background: Concerns have been raised of a potential connection between excessive online activity outside the academic realm and increased levels of psychological distress in young people. Young Minds Matter: the second Australian Child and Adolescent Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing provides estimates of the prevalence of online activity and allows an exploration of associations between this activity, a range of mental disorders, socio-demographic characteristics and risk taking behaviour.

Methods: Based on a randomized nationally representative sample, a household survey of mental health and wellbeing (Young Minds Matter) was conducted in 2013-14.

Service use by Australian children for emotional and behavioural problems: Findings from the second Australian Child and Adolescent Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing.

Objective: To identify the proportion of children and adolescents in Australia and the proportion of those with mental disorders who used services for emotional and behavioural problems, the type of services used and what characteristics were associated with service use.

Method: During 2013-2014, a national face-to-face household survey of mental health and wellbeing (Young Minds Matter) was conducted, involving 6310 parents and carers of 4- to 17-year-olds (55% of eligible households) and self-report surveys from 2967 11- to 17-year-olds in these households (89% of eligible youth). The survey identified 12-month mental disorders based on the Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children-Version IV and asked about service use for emotional or behavioural problems in the previous 12 months.

Methodology of Young Minds Matter: The second Australian Child and Adolescent Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing.

Objective: To describe the study design of Young Minds Matter: The second Australian Child and Adolescent Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing. The aims of the study, sample design, development of survey content, field procedures and final questionnaires are detailed.

Method: During 2013-2014, a national household survey of the mental health and wellbeing of young people was conducted involving a sample of 6310 families selected at random from across Australia.

Key findings from the second Australian Child and Adolescent Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing.

Objective: To estimate the prevalence of mental disorders in children and adolescents in Australia, and the severity and impact of those mental disorders.

Method: Seven mental disorders were assessed using the parent- or carer-completed version of the Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children Version IV, and major depressive disorder was also assessed using the youth self-report version of the Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children Version IV. Severity and impact were assessed using an extended version of the Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children Version IV impact on functioning questions, and days absent from school due to symptoms of mental disorders.

Reliability and validity of a short version of the general functioning subscale of the McMaster Family Assessment Device.

The General Functioning 12-item subscale (GF12) of The McMaster Family Assessment Device (FAD) has been validated as a single index measure to assess family functioning. This study reports on the reliability and validity of using only the six positive items from the General Functioning subscale (GF6+). Existing data from two Western Australian studies, the Raine Study (RS) and the Western Australian Child Health Survey (WACHS), was used to analyze the psychometric properties of the GF6+ subscale.

Smoking, mental illness and socioeconomic disadvantage: analysis of the Australian National Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing.

Background: High rates of smoking and lower rates of smoking cessation are known to be associated with common mental disorders such as anxiety and depression, and with individual and community measures of socioeconomic status. It is not known to what extent mental illness and socioeconomic status might be jointly associated with smoking behaviour. We set out to examine the relationship between mental illness, measures of socioeconomic disadvantage and both current smoking and smoking cessation rates.