Search

Research

This article examines whether connection to digital technologies helps connect young Indigenous people in Australia to culture, community and country to support good mental health and well-being and protect against indirect and potentially long-term effects of COVID-19.

News & Events

Two The Kids Research Institute Australia researchers have been named as finalists in the 2020 Western Australian Premier’s Science Awards.

Research

A lack of appropriate care and discrimination in healthcare settings likely compounds the existing risks to mental health and well-being for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, queer/questioning, and asexual (LGBTQA+) young people. The current study contributes findings from Aboriginal LGBTQA+ young people's perspectives on their health service needs and preferences.

Research

Peers play a crucial role in supporting wellbeing and psychosocial development for young people aged 12-25. However, a cancer experience often leads to challenges maintaining friendships. There have been no prior attempts to map or synthesise available research or resources on support specifically from friends for young people with cancer, limiting the capacity to draw conclusions or determine next steps for how to best support young people with cancer. This review aims to address this gap by mapping and synthesising the available literature and resources.

Research

Hospital-treated self-harm is common, costly and associated with repeated self-harm and suicide. Providing a comprehensive psychosocial assessment following self-harm is recommended by professional bodies and may improve outcomes.

Research

Internalizing problems comprise a significant amount of the mental health difficulties experienced during childhood. Implementing prevention programs during early childhood may prevent internalizing problems. The present systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the effect of both targeted and universal prevention programs in preventing internalizing problems for children aged 3- to 5-years and their parents.

Research

Rates of mental illness are disproportionately high for young adult and higher education (e.g., university student) populations. As such, universities and tertiary institutions often devote significant efforts to services and programs that support and treat mental illness and/or mental distress. However, within that portfolio of treatment approaches, structured exercise has been relatively underutilised and greater research attention is needed to develop this evidence base.

Research

To improve early intervention and personalise treatment for individuals early on the psychosis continuum, a greater understanding of symptom dynamics is required. We address this by identifying and evaluating the movement between empirically derived attenuated psychotic symptomatic substates-clusters of symptoms that occur within individuals over time.

Research

There is a dire paucity of research into the burden, correlates and motives of substance use among trans young people in Australia.

Research

Dissociation can exist along a continuum from normal developmental experiences to severe and contributing to persistent mental illness and impeding normal development. It can also occur as a discreet symptom in a range of disorders or as a disorder itself, and can change depending on a number of factors such as the age and stage of development.