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Objective: Mental health problems are an international public health issue affecting a substantial proportion of youth. This study aimed to identify groups of young children exhibiting distinct internalising and externalising symptom trajectories across early childhood compared to existing norms. Linear regression then identified child, parenting and family predictors from infancy in the development of internalising and externalising behaviours at age 5 years., Method: This consisted of a follow-up of 5-year-old children from a longitudinal, population-based study with earlier surveys having been completed by primary caregivers when the children were aged 7, 12, 18, 24 and 36 months. Five hundred 5-year-olds (68% retention) were included from 733 children recruited at age 6-7 months from routine well-child appointments across six socio-economically diverse government areas in Victoria, Australia. Mothers then completed a further questionnaire when their children reached 5 years of age, repeating the instruments included in previous waves. The primary outcomes were the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL), 1.5-5 internalising and externalising symptoms (T-scores in relation to norms) and behaviours (raw scores)., Results: Across early childhood, three distinct profiles for each of the internalising and externalising symptoms (T-scores) were identified and compared to CBCL norms. Around 20% of this Australian child population exhibited consistently elevated symptoms for each problem. Regarding aetiology, longitudinally the strongest predictors of internalising behaviours at 5 years of age were harsh discipline, maternal stress, having no older siblings, single parenthood and maternal substance misuse. The strongest predictors of externalising behaviours at 5 years of age were male sex, harsh discipline and maternal stress. The predictors explained 22% of the variation in internalising behaviours and 24% of the variation in externalising behaviours at 5 years., Conclusions: Starting as early as the toddler period, effective population approaches to preventing mental health problems are needed. Randomised trials of preventive interventions focused on improving parenting practices and reducing maternal stress are under way.

Objective: To determine whether adolescent health and well-being are associated with having a pet in the household (any pet, or specifically dogs, cats or horses/ponies) or average daily time spent caring for/playing with pet(s)., Methods: Design, setting and participants--Cross-sectional data from the third wave of the Health of Young Victorians Study (HOYVS), a school-based population study in Victoria, Australia. Predictors--Adolescent-reported pet ownership and average daily time spent caring for/playing with pet(s). Outcomes--Self-reported quality of life (KIDSCREEN); average 4-day daily physical activity level from a computerised diary; parent-proxy and self-reported physical and psychosocial health status (PedsQL); measured BMI status (not overweight, overweight, obese) and blood pressure. Statistical Analysis--Regression methods, adjusted for socio-demographic factors, and non-parametric methods., Results: Household pet data were available for 928 adolescents (466 boys; mean age of 15.9 (SD 1.2) years). Most adolescents (88.7%) reported having a pet in their household. Of these, 75.1% reported no activity involving pets over the surveyed days. It appeared that neither owning a pet nor time spent caring for/playing with a pet was related, positively or negatively, to adolescent health or well-being., Conclusions: Despite high rates of pet ownership, adolescents had little interaction with pets. It appears that owning a pet and time spent caring for/playing with a pet was not clearly associated with adolescents' health or well-being., (© 2010 The Authors. Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health © 2010 Paediatrics and Child Health Division (Royal Australasian College of Physicians).)

Background: Few methodologically rigorous international comparisons of student-reported antisocial behavior have been conducted. This paper examines whether there are differences in the frequency of both antisocial behavior and societal responses to antisocial behavior in Victoria, Australia and Washington State, United States. These 2 states were chosen due to their similarities on sociodemographic characteristics and their differences in policy frameworks around problem behavior including antisocial behavior and substance use., Methods: State representative samples of students (N = 5769) in school grades 5, 7, and 9 in Victoria and Washington State completed a modified version of the Communities That Care self-report survey of behavior and societal responses to behavior. Chi-square analyses compared frequencies of antisocial behavior, school suspensions, and police arrests in the 2 states. Multivariate logistic regression analyses were conducted for each outcome measure to examine the effect of state, controlling for sample design, clustering of students within schools, age, socioeconomic status, and urbanicity., Results: Few state differences in student-reported antisocial behavior were found, although frequencies varied across behavior type and grade level. Differences in societal responses were observed across grade levels with grade 5 Washington students reporting higher rates of school suspension. Older Washington students reported more arrests., Conclusions: Rates of student antisocial behavior appear similar in these 2 states in Australia and the United States. However, youth in the United States relative to Australia may experience greater societal consequences for problem behavior. Further research is required to examine the impact of these consequences on subsequent behavior.

Using mail survey data collected from primary and secondary school administrators in Washington State, United States, and in Victoria, Australia, this study compared aspects of the school drug policy environment in the 2 states. Documented substance-use policies were prevalent in Washington and Victoria but less prevalent.in primary schools, especially in Victoria. Victorian school policy-setting processes were significantly more likely to involve teachers, parents, and students than processes in Washington schools. Consistent with expectations based on their respective national drug policy frameworks, school drug policies in Washington schools were more oriented toward total abstinence and more frequently enforced with harsh punishment (such as expulsion or calling law enforcement), whereas policies in Victorian schools were more reflective of harm-minimization principles. Within both states, however, schools more regularly used harsh punishment and remediation consequences for alcohol and illicit-drug violations compared to tobacco policy violations, which were treated more leniently.