%0 Journal Article %J Addiction %D 2014 %T Adolescent predictors and environmental correlates of young adult alcohol use problems. %A Toumbourou, John W %A Evans-Whipp, Tracy J %A Smith, Rachel %A Hemphill, Sheryl A %A Herrenkohl, Todd I %A Catalano, Richard F %K Adolescent %K Adolescent Behavior %K Alcohol Drinking %K Alcohol-Related Disorders %K Cohort Studies %K Female %K Humans %K Longitudinal Studies %K Male %K Risk Factors %K Social Environment %K Street Drugs %K Substance-Related Disorders %K Victoria %K Workplace %K Young Adult %X

AIMS: To examine the rates of young adult alcohol and drug use and alcohol problems, adolescent predictors of young adult alcohol problems and correlations with young adult social, work and recreational environments.

DESIGN: Adolescents were followed longitudinally into young adulthood. Predictors were measured in grade 9 (average age 15), and environmental correlates and outcomes in young adulthood (average age 21).

SETTING: Students recruited in Victoria, Australia in 2002, were resurveyed in 2010/11.

PARTICIPANTS: Analytical n=2309, 80% retention.

MEASUREMENTS: Adolescent self-report predictors included past-month alcohol use. Young adults completed the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) together with reports of environmental influences.

FINDINGS: Comparisons to United States national school graduate samples revealed higher rates of alcohol, tobacco and illicit drug use (other than cannabis) in Victoria. For example, rates of past month use at age 21-22 were: alcohol 69.3% US versus 84.9%, 95% confidence interval (CI) 81.3-88.6% Victoria; illicit drugs (other than cannabis) 8.8 versus 12.7%, CI 9.7-15.7%. AUDIT alcohol problems (scored 8+) were identified for 41.2%, CI 38.8-43.6% of young adults in Victoria. The likelihood of young adult alcohol problems was higher for frequent adolescent alcohol users and those exposed to environments characterized by high alcohol use and problems in young adulthood.

CONCLUSIONS: High rates of alcohol problems are evident in more than two in five Australian young adults, and these problems appear to be influenced both by earlier patterns of adolescent alcohol use and by young adult social, work and recreational environments.

%B Addiction %V 109 %P 417-24 %8 2014 Mar %G eng %N 3 %R 10.1111/add.12401 %0 Journal Article %J Prev Sci %D 2014 %T Prevalence and community variation in harmful levels of family conflict witnessed by children: implications for prevention. %A Habib, Cherine %A Toumbourou, John W %A McRitchie, Martin %A Williams, Joanne %A Kremer, Peter %A McKenzie, Dean %A Catalano, Richard F %K Adolescent %K Australia %K Child %K Depression %K Family Conflict %K Female %K Health Promotion %K Humans %K Longitudinal Studies %K Male %K Prevalence %K Risk Factors %K Surveys and Questionnaires %X

Children's reports of high family conflict consistently predict poor outcomes. The study identified criteria for high family conflict based on prospective prediction of increased risk for childhood depression. These criteria were subsequently used to establish the prevalence of high family conflict in Australian communities and to identify community correlates suitable for targeting prevention programs. Study 1 utilised a longitudinal design. Grade 6 and 8 students completed a family conflict scale (from the widely used Communities That Care survey) in 2003 and depression symptomotology were evaluated at a 1-year follow-up (International Youth Development Study, N = 1,798). Receiver-operating characteristic analysis yielded a cut-off point on a family conflict score with depression symptomatology as a criterion variable. A cut-off score of 2.5 or more (on a scale of 1 to 4) correctly identified 69 % with depression symptomology, with a specificity of 77.2 % and sensitivity at 44.3 %. Study 2 used data from an Australian national survey of Grade 6 and 8 children (Healthy Neighbourhoods Study, N = 8,256). Prevalence estimates were calculated, and multivariate logistic regression with multi-level modelling was used to establish factors associated with community variation in family conflict levels. Thirty-three percent of Australian children in 2006 were exposed to levels of family conflict that are likely to increase their future risk for depression. Significant community correlates for elevated family conflict included Indigenous Australian identification, socioeconomic disadvantage, urban and state location, maternal absence and paternal unemployment. The analysis provides indicators for targeting family-level mental health promotion programs.

%B Prev Sci %V 15 %P 757-66 %8 2014 Oct %G eng %N 5 %R 10.1007/s11121-013-0416-4 %0 Journal Article %J J Early Adolesc %D 2014 %T Reassessing the effects of early adolescent alcohol use on later antisocial behavior: A longitudinal study of students in Victoria, Australia, and Washington State, United States %A Hemphill, Sheryl A %A Heerde, Jessica A %A Scholes-Balog, Kirsty E %A Smith, Rachel %A Herrenkohl, Todd I %A Toumbourou, John W %A Catalano, Richard F %X

The effect of early adolescent alcohol use on antisocial behavior was examined at one- and two-year follow-up in Washington, United States and Victoria, Australia. Each state used the same methods to survey statewide representative samples of students (N = 1,858, 52% female) in 2002 (Grade 7 [G7]), 2003 (Grade 8 [G8]), and 2004 (Grade 9 [G9]). Rates of lifetime, current, frequent, and heavy episodic alcohol use were higher in Victoria than Washington State, whereas rates of five antisocial behaviors were generally comparable across states. After controlling for established risk factors, few associations between alcohol use and antisocial behavior remained, except that G7 current use predicted G8 police arrests and stealing and G9 carrying a weapon and stealing; G7 heavy episodic use predicted G8 and G9 police arrests; and G7 lifetime use predicted G9 carrying a weapon. Hence, risk factors other than alcohol were stronger predictors of antisocial behaviors.

%B J Early Adolesc %V 34 %P 360-386 %8 2014 Apr 1 %G eng %N 3 %R 10.1177/0272431613491830 %0 Journal Article %J Accid Anal Prev %D 2013 %T Adolescent exposure to drink driving as a predictor of young adults' drink driving. %A Evans-Whipp, Tracy J %A Plenty, Stephanie M %A Toumbourou, John W %A Olsson, Craig %A Rowland, Bosco %A Hemphill, Sheryl A %K Adolescent %K Alcohol Drinking %K Automobile Driving %K Child %K Dangerous Behavior %K Female %K Follow-Up Studies %K Humans %K Imitative Behavior %K Logistic Models %K Male %K Multivariate Analysis %K Risk Factors %K Self Report %K Victoria %K Young Adult %X

The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of exposure to others' drink driving during adolescence on self-reported driving under the influence (DUI) of alcohol in young adulthood. Data were drawn from 1956 participants with a driving license enrolled in the International Youth Development Study from Victoria, Australia. During 2003 and 2004, adolescents in Grades 7, 9 and 10 (aged 12-17) completed questionnaires examining whether they had ridden in a vehicle with a driver who had been drinking, as well as other demographic, individual, peer and family risk factors for DUI. In 2010, the same participants (aged 18-24) then reported on their own DUI behaviour. 18% of young adults with a driving license reported DUI in the past 12 months. Exposure to others' drink driving during adolescence was associated with an increased likelihood of DUI as a young adult (OR=2.13, 95% CI 1.68-2.69). This association remained after accounting for the effects of other potential confounding factors from the individual, peer and family domains (OR=1.62, 95% CI 1.23-2.13). Observing the drink driving behaviours of others during adolescence may increase the likelihood of DUI as a young adult. Strategies to reduce youth exposure to drink driving are warranted.

%B Accid Anal Prev %V 51 %P 185-91 %8 2013 Mar %G eng %R 10.1016/j.aap.2012.11.016 %0 Journal Article %J Aust J Psychol %D 2013 %T Does school suspension affect subsequent youth nonviolent antisocial behavior? A longitudinal study of students in Victoria, Australia and Washington State, United States. %A Hemphill, Sheryl A %A Kotevski, Aneta %A Herrenkohl, Todd I %A Smith, Rachel %A Toumbourou, John W %A Catalano, Richard F %X

School suspension has been not only associated with negative behaviours but is predictive of future poor outcomes. The current study investigates a) whether school suspension is a unique predictor of youth nonviolent antisocial behaviour (NVAB) relative to other established predictors, and b) whether the predictors of NVAB are similar in Australia and the United States (U.S.). The data analysed here draws on two state-wide representative samples of Grade 7 and 9 students in Victoria, Australia and Washington State, U.S., resurveyed at 12-month follow-up (N = 3,677, 99% retention). School suspension did not uniquely predict NVAB in the final model. The predictors of NVAB, similar across states, included previous student NVAB; current alcohol and tobacco use; poor family management; association with antisocial friends; and low commitment to school. An implication of the findings is that U.S. evidence-based prevention programs targeting the influences investigated here could be trialled in Australia.

%B Aust J Psychol %V 65 %P 236-249 %8 2013 Dec %G eng %N 4 %R 10.1111/ajpy.12026 %0 Journal Article %J Health Educ Res %D 2013 %T The impact of school alcohol policy on student drinking. %A Evans-Whipp, Tracy J %A Plenty, Stephanie M %A Catalano, Richard F %A Herrenkohl, Todd I %A Toumbourou, John W %K Adolescent %K Adolescent Behavior %K Alcohol Drinking %K Binge Drinking %K Cross-Cultural Comparison %K Female %K Guideline Adherence %K Humans %K Longitudinal Studies %K Male %K Organizational Policy %K Risk Reduction Behavior %K Schools %K Self Report %K Social Class %K Students %K Victoria %K Washington %X

Although it is common for secondary schools to implement alcohol policies to reduce alcohol misuse, there has been little evaluation of the efficacy of these policies. The purpose of this study was to test the impact of the degree and type of alcohol policy enforcement in state representative samples of secondary students in Washington State, USA, and Victoria, Australia (n = 1848). Multivariate logistic regressions were used to examine the prospective association between student reports of school alcohol policy in Grade 8 and self-reported alcohol use in Grade 9, controlling for age, gender, state, family socio-economic status and Grade 8 alcohol use. The likelihood of students drinking on school grounds was increased when students perceived lax policy enforcement. Student perceptions of harm minimization alcohol messages, abstinence alcohol messages and counselling for alcohol policy violators predicted reduced likelihood of binge drinking. Students perceiving harm minimization messages and counselling for alcohol policy violators had a reduced likelihood of experiencing alcohol-related harms. Perceptions of harsh penalties were unrelated to drinking behaviour. These results suggest that perceived policy enforcement may lessen drinking at school 1 year later and that harm minimization messages and counselling approaches may also lessen harmful drinking behaviours as harm minimization advocates suggest.

%B Health Educ Res %V 28 %P 651-62 %8 2013 Aug %G eng %N 4 %R 10.1093/her/cyt068 %0 Journal Article %J Addiction %D 2013 %T Predicting steep escalations in alcohol use over the teenage years: Age-related variations in key social influences. %A Chan, G C K %A Kelly, Adrian B %A Toumbourou, John W %A Hemphill, Sheryl A %A Young, R M %A Haynes, Michele A %A Catalano, Richard F %K Adolescent %K Adolescent Behavior %K Age Factors %K Alcohol Drinking %K Attitude %K Child %K Female %K Humans %K Longitudinal Studies %K Male %K Nuclear Family %K Peer Group %K Risk Factors %K Schools %K Self Report %K Social Environment %K Students %K Victoria %X

AIMS: This study examined how family, peer and school factors are related to different trajectories of adolescent alcohol use at key developmental periods.

DESIGN: Latent class growth analysis was used to identify trajectories based on five waves of data (from grade 6, age 12 to grade 11, age 17), with predictors at grades 5, 7 and 9 included as covariates.

SETTING: Adolescents completed surveys during school hours.

PARTICIPANTS: A total of 808 students in Victoria, Australia.

MEASUREMENTS: Alcohol use trajectories were based on self-reports of 30-day frequency of alcohol use. Predictors included sibling alcohol use, attachment to parents, parental supervision, parental attitudes favourable to adolescent alcohol use, peer alcohol use and school commitment.

FINDINGS: A total of 8.2% showed steep escalation in alcohol use. Relative to non-users, steep escalators were predicted by age-specific effects for low school commitment at grade 7 (P = 0.031) and parental attitudes at grade 5 (P = 0.003), and age-generalized effects for sibling alcohol use (Ps = 0.001, 0.012, 0.033 at grades 5, 7 and 9, respectively) and peer alcohol use (Ps = 0.041, < 0.001, < 0.001 at grades 5, 7 and 9, respectively). Poor parental supervision was associated with steep escalators at grade 9 (P < 0.001) but not the other grades. Attachment to parents was unrelated to alcohol trajectories.

CONCLUSIONS: Parental disapproval of alcohol use before transition to high school, low school commitment at transition to high school, and sibling and peer alcohol use during adolescence are associated with a higher risk of steep escalations in alcohol use.

%B Addiction %V 108 %P 1924-32 %8 2013 Nov %G eng %N 11 %R 10.1111/add.12295 %0 Journal Article %J Health Educ Behav %D 2012 %T The impact of school suspension on student tobacco use: a longitudinal study in Victoria, Australia, and Washington State, United States. %A Hemphill, Sheryl A %A Heerde, Jessica A %A Herrenkohl, Todd I %A Toumbourou, John W %A Catalano, Richard F %K Adolescent %K Adolescent Behavior %K Continental Population Groups %K Family %K Female %K Health Behavior %K Humans %K Longitudinal Studies %K Male %K Peer Group %K Risk Factors %K Schools %K Sex Factors %K Smoking %K Substance-Related Disorders %K Victoria %K Washington %X

CONTEXT: School suspension may have unintended consequences in contributing to problem behaviors, including dropping out from school, substance use, and antisocial behavior. Tobacco use is an early-onset problem behavior, but prospective studies of the effects of suspension on tobacco use are lacking.

METHOD: Longitudinal school-based survey of students drawn as a two-stage cluster sample, administered in 2002 and 2003, in Washington State, United States, and Victoria, Australia. The study uses statewide representative samples of students in Grades 7 and 9 (N = 3,599).

RESULTS: Rates of tobacco use were higher for Victorian than Washington State students. School suspension remained a predictor of current tobacco use at 12-month follow-up, after controlling for established risk factors including prior tobacco and other drug use for Grade 7 but not Grade 9 students.

CONCLUSIONS: School suspension is associated with early adolescent tobacco use, itself an established predictor of adverse outcomes in young people. Findings suggest the need to explore process mechanisms and alternatives to school suspensions as a response to challenging student behavior in early adolescence.

%B Health Educ Behav %V 39 %P 45-56 %8 2012 Feb %G eng %N 1 %R 10.1177/1090198111406724 %0 Journal Article %J J Adolesc Health %D 2012 %T Longitudinal predictors of cyber and traditional bullying perpetration in Australian secondary school students. %A Hemphill, Sheryl A %A Kotevski, Aneta %A Tollit, Michelle %A Smith, Rachel %A Herrenkohl, Todd I %A Toumbourou, John W %A Catalano, Richard F %K Adolescent %K Aggression %K Australia %K Bullying %K Child %K Crime Victims %K Educational Status %K Family Relations %K Female %K Forecasting %K Humans %K Internet %K Longitudinal Studies %K Male %K Peer Group %K Risk Factors %K Schools %K Students %X

PURPOSE: Cyberbullying perpetration (using communication technology to engage in bullying) is a recent phenomenon that has generated much concern. There are few prospective longitudinal studies of cyberbullying. The current article examines the individual, peer, family, and school risk factors for both cyber and traditional bullying (the latter is bullying that does not use technology) in adolescents.

METHODS: This article draws on a rich data set from the International Youth Development Study, a longitudinal study of students in Victoria, Australia and Washington State, United States, which began in 2002. In this article, data from almost 700 Victorian students recruited in grade 5 are analyzed to examine grade 7 (aged 12-13 years) predictors of traditional and cyberbullying perpetration in grade 9 (aged 14-15 years).

RESULTS: Fifteen per cent of students engaged in cyberbullying, 21% in traditional bullying, and 7% in both. There are similarities and important differences in the predictors of cyber and traditional bullying. In the fully adjusted model, only prior engagement in relational aggression (a covert form of bullying, such as spreading rumors about another student) predicted cyberbullying perpetration. For traditional bullying, previous relational aggression was also predictive, as was having been a victim and perpetrator of traditional bullying, family conflict, and academic failure.

CONCLUSIONS: The use of evidence-based bullying prevention programs is supported to reduce experiences of all forms of bullying perpetration (cyber, traditional, and relational aggression). In addition, for traditional bullying perpetration, addressing family conflict and student academic support are also important.

%B J Adolesc Health %V 51 %P 59-65 %8 2012 Jul %G eng %N 1 %R 10.1016/j.jadohealth.2011.11.019 %0 Journal Article %J J Youth Adolesc %D 2012 %T Multiple identification and risks: examination of peer factors across multiracial and single-race youth. %A Choi, Yoonsun %A He, Michael %A Herrenkohl, Todd I %A Catalano, Richard F %A Toumbourou, John W %K Adolescent %K Adolescent Behavior %K Child %K Continental Population Groups %K Dangerous Behavior %K Female %K Humans %K Longitudinal Studies %K Male %K Peer Group %K Prevalence %K Risk-Taking %K Social Identification %K Substance-Related Disorders %K Violence %X

Multiracial youth are thought to be more vulnerable to peer-related risk factors than are single-race youth. However, there have been surprisingly few well-designed studies on this topic. This study empirically investigated the extent to which multiracial youth are at higher risk for peer influenced problem behavior. Data are from a representative and longitudinal sample of youth from Washington State (N = 1,760, mean age = 14.13, 50.9% girls). Of those in the sample, 225 youth self-identified as multiracial (12.8%), 1,259 as White (71.5%), 152 as Latino (8.6%), and 124 as Asian American (7.1%). Results show that multiracial youth have higher rates of violence and alcohol use than Whites and more marijuana use than Asian Americans. Higher levels of socioeconomic disadvantage and single-parent family status partly explained the higher rates of problem behaviors among multiracial youth. Peer risk factors of substance-using or antisocial friends were higher for multiracial youth than Whites, even after socioeconomic variables were accounted for, demonstrating a higher rate of peer risks among multiracial youth. The number of substance-using friends was the most consistently significant correlate and predictor of problems and was highest among multiracial youth. However, interaction tests did not provide consistent evidence of a stronger influence of peer risks among multiracial youth. Findings underscore the importance of a differentiated understanding of vulnerability in order to better target prevention and intervention efforts as well as the need for further research that can help identify and explain the unique experiences and vulnerabilities of multiracial youth.

%B J Youth Adolesc %V 41 %P 847-62 %8 2012 Jul %G eng %N 7 %R 10.1007/s10964-012-9750-2 %0 Journal Article %J J Community Psychol %D 2012 %T Pathways From School Suspension to Adolescent Nonviolent Antisocial Behavior in Students in Victoria, Australia and Washington State, United States. %A Hemphill, Sheryl A %A Herrenkohl, Todd I %A Plenty, Stephanie M %A Toumbourou, John W %A Catalano, Richard F %A McMorris, Barbara J %X

School suspension is associated with school drop-out, crime, delinquency, and alcohol and other drug use for the suspended student. Important research questions are how academic and related factors are relevant to the school suspension process and the generality of the process in different sites. State representative samples of Grade 7 students (N = 1,945) in Washington State, United States and Victoria, Australia were followed from 2002 to 2004. In both states, Grade 7 school suspension was associated with higher rates of nonviolent antisocial behavior and suspension 24 months later, before Grade 8 factors were entered into the model. Relevant factors were Grade 8 low school grades and association with antisocial peers, as well as Grade 8 antisocial behavior in Washington State only. The implications of these findings for the ways in which suspension is used in schools are outlined.

%B J Community Psychol %V 40 %P 301-318 %8 2012 Apr 1 %G eng %N 3 %0 Journal Article %J Am J Orthopsychiatry %D 2012 %T Predictors and responses to the growth in physical violence during adolescence: a comparison of students in Washington State and Victoria, Australia. %A Herrenkohl, Todd I %A Hemphill, Sheryl A %A Mason, W A %A Toumbourou, John W %A Catalano, Richard F %K Adolescent %K Adolescent Behavior %K Australia %K Child %K Cross-Sectional Studies %K Female %K Humans %K Male %K Models, Psychological %K Risk Factors %K Students %K Victoria %K Violence %K Washington %X

This study investigates patterns in violence over 3 time points in early- to mid-adolescence in 2 statewide representative samples of youth, one in Washington State, USA, and the other in Victoria, Australia. Comparable data collection methods in both states were used to cross-nationally compare patterns of violence, risk factors, and responses to violence (school suspensions and arrests) in 2 policy contexts. Risk factors include early use of alcohol, binge drinking, involvement with antisocial peers, family conflict, poor family management, sensation seeking, and bully victimization. These are modeled as correlates of initial violence and predictors of change in violence over a 3-year period, from ages 12-15, for participating youth. Results suggest that patterns and predictors of violence are mostly similar in the 2 states. Initial levels of violence (age 13) and change over time in violence were associated in both states with more youth school suspensions and more police arrests in Grade 9. Some cross-national differences were also shown. For example, correlations of violence with gender and violence with binge drinking were stronger in Victoria, whereas correlations of violence with early use of alcohol and with antisocial peer involvement were stronger in Washington State. Antisocial peer involvement and family conflict were significant predictors of a gradual increase in violence from Grades 7-9 for youth in Victoria only. Implications are discussed with attention to prevention and intervention efforts.

%B Am J Orthopsychiatry %V 82 %P 41-9 %8 2012 Jan %G eng %N 1 %R 10.1111/j.1939-0025.2011.01139.x %0 Journal Article %J Psychol Addict Behav %D 2011 %T Early age alcohol use and later alcohol problems in adolescents: Individual and peer mediators in a bi-national study. %A Mason, W A %A Toumbourou, John W %A Herrenkohl, Todd I %A Hemphill, Sheryl A %A Catalano, Richard F %A Patton, George C %K Adolescent %K Adolescent Behavior %K Age of Onset %K Alcohol Drinking %K Alcohol-Related Disorders %K Cross-Cultural Comparison %K Female %K Humans %K Impulsive Behavior %K Longitudinal Studies %K Male %K Models, Statistical %K Peer Group %K Risk Factors %K Risk-Taking %K Social Control, Informal %K Students %K Substance-Related Disorders %K Victoria %K Washington %K Young Adult %X

This paper examines whether there is cross-national similarity in the longitudinal relationship between early age alcohol use and adolescent alcohol problems. Potential mechanisms underlying this relationship also are examined, testing adolescent alcohol use, low self-regulation, and peer deviance as possible mediators. Students (N = 1,945) participating in the International Youth Development Study, a longitudinal panel survey study, responded to questions on alcohol use and influencing factors, and were followed annually over a 3-year period from 2002 to 2004 (98% retention rate). State-representative, community student samples were recruited in grade 7 in Washington State, United States (US, n = 961, 78% of those eligible; Mage = 13.09, SD = .44) and Victoria, Australia (n = 984, 76% of those eligible; Mage = 12.93, SD = .41). Analyses were conducted using multiple-group structural equation modeling. In both states, early age alcohol use (age 13) had a small but statistically significant association with subsequent alcohol problems (age 15). Overall, there was little evidence for mediation of early alcohol effects. Low self-regulation prospectively predicted peer deviance, alcohol use, and alcohol problems in both states. Peer deviance was more positively related to alcohol use and low self-regulation among students in Victoria compared to students in Washington State. The small but persistent association of early age alcohol use with alcohol problems across both samples is consistent with efforts to delay alcohol initiation to help prevent problematic alcohol use. Self-regulation was an important influence, supporting the need to further investigate the developmental contribution of neurobehavioral disinhibition.

%B Psychol Addict Behav %V 25 %P 625-33 %8 2011 Dec %G eng %N 4 %R 10.1037/a0023320 %0 Journal Article %J Addiction %D 2011 %T Gender differences in the impact of families on alcohol use: a lagged longitudinal study of early adolescents. %A Kelly, Adrian B %A O'Flaherty, Martin %A Toumbourou, John W %A Connor, Jason P %A Hemphill, Sheryl A %A Catalano, Richard F %K Adolescent %K Adolescent Behavior %K Age Factors %K Alcohol Drinking %K Child %K Family Relations %K Female %K Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice %K Humans %K Logistic Models %K Male %K Models, Statistical %K Parents %K Peer Group %K Sex Factors %K Victoria %X

AIMS: From the pre-teen to the mid-teen years, rates of alcohol use and misuse increase rapidly. Cross-sectional research shows that positive family emotional climate (low conflict, high closeness) is protective, and there is emerging evidence that these protective mechanisms are different for girls versus boys. The aim of this study was to explore gender differences in the longitudinal impact of family emotional climate on adolescent alcohol use and exposure to peer drinking networks.

DESIGN: Three-wave two-level (individual, within-individual over time) ordinal logistic regression with alcohol use in the past year as the dependent measure and family variables lagged by 1 year.

SETTING: Adolescents completed surveys during school hours.

PARTICIPANTS: A total of 855 Australian students (modal age 10-11 years at baseline) participating in the International Youth Development Study (Victoria, Australia).

MEASUREMENTS: These included emotional closeness to mother/father, family conflict, parent disapproval of alcohol use and peer alcohol use.

FINDINGS: For girls, the effect of emotional closeness to mothers on alcohol use was mediated by exposure to high-risk peer networks. Parent disapproval of alcohol use was protective for both genders, but this effect was larger for boys versus girls, and there was no evidence that peer use mediated this effect. Peer drinking networks showed stronger direct risk effects than family variables.

CONCLUSIONS: Family factors unidirectionally impact on growth in adolescent alcohol use and effects vary with child gender.

%B Addiction %V 106 %P 1427-36 %8 2011 Aug %G eng %N 8 %R 10.1111/j.1360-0443.2011.03435.x %0 Journal Article %J J Stud Alcohol Drugs %D 2011 %T Influence of family factors and supervised alcohol use on adolescent alcohol use and harms: similarities between youth in different alcohol policy contexts. %A McMorris, Barbara J %A Catalano, Richard F %A Kim, Min J %A Toumbourou, John W %A Hemphill, Sheryl A %K Adolescent %K Adolescent Behavior %K Age Factors %K Alcohol Drinking %K Family Characteristics %K Female %K Harm Reduction %K Health Policy %K Humans %K Male %K Parent-Child Relations %K Parenting %K Risk Factors %K Surveys and Questionnaires %K Victoria %K Washington %X

OBJECTIVE: Harm-minimization policies suggest that alcohol use is a part of normal adolescent development and that parents should supervise their children's use to encourage responsible drinking. Zero-tolerance policies suggest that all underage alcohol use should be discouraged. This article compared hypotheses derived from harm-minimization and zero-tolerance policies regarding the influence of family context and supervised drinking on adolescent alcohol use and related harms among adolescents in Washington State, USA, and Victoria, Australia, two states that have respectively adopted zero-tolerance and harm-minimization policies.

METHOD: Representative samples of seventh-grade students (N = 1,945; 989 females) were recruited from schools in each state. Students completed comprehensive questionnaires on alcohol use, related problem behaviors, and risk and protective factors annually from 2002 to 2004 when they were in ninth grade.

RESULTS: Relationships between family context and alcohol use and harmful use were very similar in both states. Adult-supervised settings for alcohol use were associated with higher levels of harmful alcohol consequences. Adult-supervised alcohol use mediated the links between favorable parental attitudes to alcohol use and ninth-grade alcohol use for students in both states.

CONCLUSIONS: Despite policy differences in the two states, relationships between family context variables and alcohol use and harmful use are remarkably similar. Adult-supervised settings for alcohol use resulted in higher levels of harmful alcohol consequences, contrary to predictions derived from harm-minimization policy. Findings challenge the harm-minimization position that supervised alcohol use or early-age alcohol use will reduce the development of adolescent alcohol problems.

%B J Stud Alcohol Drugs %V 72 %P 418-28 %8 2011 May %G eng %N 3 %0 Journal Article %J Crim Behav Ment Health %D 2011 %T Longitudinal consequences of adolescent bullying perpetration and victimisation: A study of students in Victoria, Australia. %A Hemphill, Sheryl A %A Kotevski, Aneta %A Herrenkohl, Todd I %A Bond, Lyndal %A Kim, Min J %A Toumbourou, John W %A Catalano, Richard F %K Adolescent %K Bullying %K Crime Victims %K Humans %K Logistic Models %K Longitudinal Studies %K Peer Group %K Schools %K Social Environment %K Students %K Surveys and Questionnaires %K Victoria %X

AIMS: To examine the associations between self-reported bullying perpetration and victimisation in Years 7 and 10 and a range of psychosocial outcomes in Year 11.

METHOD: This analysis draws on data from the International Youth Development Study, a longitudinal study of 5769 students from Victoria, Australia and Washington State, United States who were recruited through schools in Years 5, 7 and 9 in 2002. Data for the current results are taken from participants in the youngest (Year 5) Victorian cohort of the study.

RESULTS: Rates of bullying victimisation exceeded 30% and up to one in five students had engaged in bullying. Adjusted logistic regression analyses revealed that bullying perpetration, and bullying victimisation in Year 7 did not significantly predict psychosocial outcomes in Year 11. Bullying perpetration in Year 10 was associated with an increased likelihood of theft, violent behaviour and binge drinking. Year 10 bullying victimisation was associated with an increased likelihood of Year 11 depressive symptoms.

CONCLUSIONS: Prevention approaches that target bullying perpetration and victimisation are necessary. Programmes that lessen bullying may also have an impact on other proximally related behaviours, including binge drinking and depression.

%B Crim Behav Ment Health %V 21 %P 107-16 %8 2011 Apr %G eng %N 2 %R 10.1002/cbm.802 %0 Journal Article %J J Affect Disord %D 2011 %T Predicting future depression in adolescents using the Short Mood and Feelings Questionnaire: a two-nation study. %A McKenzie, Dean P %A Toumbourou, John W %A Forbes, Andrew B %A Mackinnon, Andrew J %A McMorris, Barbara J %A Catalano, Richard F %A Patton, George C %K Adolescent %K Affect %K Australia %K Child %K Depression %K Depressive Disorder %K Emotions %K Humans %K Predictive Value of Tests %K Psychology, Adolescent %K Self Concept %K Surveys and Questionnaires %K United States %X

BACKGROUND: Adolescence is a key life period for the development of depression. Predicting the development of depression in adolescence through detecting specific early symptoms may aid in the development of timely screening and intervention programmes.

METHODS: We administered the Short Mood and Feelings Questionnaire (SMFQ) to 5769 American and Australian students aged 10 to 15 years, at two time points, separated by 12 months. We attempted to predict high levels of depression symptoms at 12 months from symptoms at baseline, using statistical approaches based upon the quality, as well as the quantity, of depression symptoms present. These approaches included classification and regression trees (CART) and logistic regression.

RESULTS: A classification tree employing four SMFQ items, such as feelings of self-hatred and of being unloved, performed almost as well as all 13 SMFQ items at predicting subsequent depression symptomatology.

LIMITATIONS: Depression was measured using a self-report instrument, rather than a criterion standard diagnostic interview.

CONCLUSION: Further validation on other populations of adolescents is required: however the results suggest that several symptoms of depression, especially feelings of self-hatred, and being unloved, are associated with increased levels of self-reported depression at 12 months post baseline. Although screening for depression can be problematic, symptoms such as the ones above should be considered for inclusion in screening tests for adolescents.

%B J Affect Disord %V 134 %P 151-9 %8 2011 Nov %G eng %N 1-3 %R 10.1016/j.jad.2011.05.022 %0 Journal Article %J J Adolesc Health %D 2011 %T Risk and protective factors for adolescent substance use in washington state, the United States and Victoria, Australia: a longitudinal study. %A Hemphill, Sheryl A %A Heerde, Jessica A %A Herrenkohl, Todd I %A Patton, George C %A Toumbourou, John W %A Catalano, Richard F %K Adolescent %K Adolescent Behavior %K Cross-Cultural Comparison %K Female %K Harm Reduction %K Health Behavior %K Humans %K Longitudinal Studies %K Male %K Parent-Child Relations %K Peer Group %K Social Environment %K Substance-Related Disorders %K Victoria %K Washington %X

PURPOSE: To compare the levels of risk and protective factors and the predictive influence of these factors on alcohol, tobacco, and cannabis use over a 12-month follow-up period in Washington State in the United States and in Victoria, Australia.

METHOD: The study involved a longitudinal school-based survey of students drawn as a two-stage cluster sample recruited through schools, and administered in the years 2002 and 2003 in both states. The study used statewide representative samples of students in the seventh and ninth grades (n = 3,876) in Washington State and Victoria.

RESULTS: Washington State students, relative to Victorian students, had higher rates of cannabis use but lower rates of alcohol and tobacco use at time 1. Levels of risk and protective factors showed few but important differences that contribute to the explanation of differences in substance use; Washington State students, relative to Victorian students, reported higher religiosity (odds ratio, .96 vs. .79) and availability of handguns (odds ratio, 1.23 vs. 1.18), but less favorable peer, community, and parental attitudes to substance use. The associations with substance use at follow-up are generally comparable, but in many instances were weaker in Washington State.

CONCLUSIONS: Levels of risk and protective factors and their associations with substance use at follow-up were mostly similar in the two states. Further high-quality longitudinal studies to establish invariance in the relations between risk and protective factors and substance use in adolescence across diverse countries are warranted.

%B J Adolesc Health %V 49 %P 312-20 %8 2011 Sep %G eng %N 3 %R 10.1016/j.jadohealth.2010.12.017 %0 Journal Article %J J Rural Health %D 2011 %T Rural adolescent alcohol, tobacco, and illicit drug use: a comparison of students in Victoria, Australia, and Washington State, United States. %A Coomber, Kerri %A Toumbourou, John W %A Miller, Peter %A Staiger, Petra K %A Hemphill, Sheryl A %A Catalano, Richard F %K Adolescent %K Adolescent Behavior %K Alcoholism %K Child %K Female %K Humans %K Interviews as Topic %K Male %K Rural Population %K Self Report %K Smoking %K Social Class %K Street Drugs %K Victoria %K Washington %X

PURPOSE: There are inconsistent research findings regarding the impact of rurality on adolescent alcohol, tobacco, and illicit substance use. Therefore, the current study reports on the effect of rurality on alcohol, tobacco, and illicit drug use among adolescents in 2 state representative samples in 2 countries, Washington State (WA) in the United States and Victoria (VIC) in Australia.

PARTICIPANTS: The International Youth Development Study (IYDS) recruited representative samples of students from Grade 7 (aged 12 to 13 years) and Grade 9 (aged 14 to 15) in both states. A total of 3,729 students responded to questions about alcohol, tobacco, cannabis, and other illicit substance use (n(VIC) = 1,852; n(WA) = 1,877). In each state, males and females were equally represented and ages ranged from 12 to 15 years.

METHODS: Data were analyzed to compare lifetime and current (past 30 days) substance use for students located in census areas classified as urban, large or small town, and rural. Findings were adjusted for school clustering and weighted to compare prevalence at median age 14 years.

FINDINGS: Rates of lifetime and current alcohol, tobacco, and cannabis use were significantly higher in rural compared to urban students in both states (odds ratio for current substance use = 1.31).

CONCLUSIONS: In both Washington State and Victoria, early adolescent rural students use substances more frequently than their urban counterparts. Future studies should examine factors that place rural adolescents at risk for alcohol, tobacco, and illicit drug use.

%B J Rural Health %V 27 %P 409-15 %8 2011 Winter %G eng %N 4 %R 10.1111/j.1748-0361.2010.00360.x %0 Journal Article %J Int J Environ Res Public Health %D 2010 %T The impact of school tobacco policies on student smoking in Washington State, United States and Victoria, Australia. %A Evans-Whipp, Tracy J %A Bond, Lyndal %A Ukoumunne, Obioha C %A Toumbourou, John W %A Catalano, Richard F %K Adolescent %K Cross-Sectional Studies %K Female %K Humans %K Male %K Organizational Policy %K Smoking %K Social Class %K Students %K Tobacco %K Victoria %K Washington %X

This paper measures tobacco policies in statewide representative samples of secondary and mixed schools in Victoria, Australia and Washington, US (N = 3,466 students from 285 schools) and tests their association with student smoking. Results from confounder-adjusted random effects (multi-level) regression models revealed that the odds of student perception of peer smoking on school grounds are decreased in schools that have strict enforcement of policy (odds ratio (OR) = 0.45; 95% CI: 0.25 to 0.82; p = 0.009). There was no clear evidence in this study that a comprehensive smoking ban, harsh penalties, remedial penalties, harm minimization policy or abstinence policy impact on any of the smoking outcomes.

%B Int J Environ Res Public Health %V 7 %P 698-710 %8 2010 Mar %G eng %N 3 %R 10.3390/ijerph7030698 %0 Journal Article %J Pediatrics %D 2010 %T Pubertal stage and the prevalence of violence and social/relational aggression. %A Hemphill, Sheryl A %A Kotevski, Aneta %A Herrenkohl, Todd I %A Toumbourou, John W %A Carlin, John B %A Catalano, Richard F %A Patton, George C %K Adolescent %K Aggression %K Antisocial Personality Disorder %K Child %K Depressive Disorder %K Female %K Humans %K Interpersonal Relations %K Male %K Prevalence %K Puberty %K Risk Factors %K Spouse Abuse %K Victoria %K Violence %K Washington %K Young Adult %X

OBJECTIVE: We examined associations between pubertal stage and violent adolescent behavior and social/relational aggression.

METHODS: The International Youth Development Study comprises statewide representative student samples in grades 5, 7, and 9 (N = 5769) in Washington State and Victoria, Australia, drawn as a 2-stage cluster sample in each state. We used a school-administered, self-report student survey to measure previous-year violent behavior (ie, attacking or beating up another person) and social/relational aggression (excluding peers from the group, threatening to spread lies or rumors), as well as risk and protective factors and pubertal development. Cross-sectional data were analyzed.

RESULTS: Compared with early puberty, the odds of violent behavior were approximately threefold higher in midpuberty (odds ratio [OR]: 2.87 [95% confidence interval (CI): 1.81-4.55]) and late puberty (OR: 3.79 [95% CI: 2.25-6.39]) after adjustment for demographic factors. For social/relational aggression, there were weaker overall associations after adjustment, but these associations included an interaction between pubertal stage and age, and stronger associations with pubertal stage at younger age were shown (P = .003; midpuberty OR: 1.78 [95% CI: 1.20-2.63]; late puberty OR: 3.00 [95% CI: 1.95-4.63]). Associations between pubertal stage and violent behavior and social/relational aggression remained after the inclusion of social contextual mediators in the analyses.

CONCLUSIONS: Pubertal stage was associated with higher rates of violent behavior and social/relational aggression, with the latter association seen only at younger ages. Puberty is an important phase at which to implement prevention programs to reduce adolescent violent and antisocial behaviors.

%B Pediatrics %V 126 %P e298-305 %8 2010 Aug %G eng %N 2 %R 10.1542/peds.2009-0574