Reductions in adolescent alcohol, tobacco and cannabis use from 1999 to 2015 were associated with similar reductions in parent favourable attitudes and availability of substances. It is plausible that a reduced tendency for parents and other adults to supply adolescent alcohol are implicated in the reductions in adolescent alcohol use observed across Australia.

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Millions of children are exposed to family violence around the world; however, the effects on adolescent academic achievement are poorly understood. Using a systematic search and review methodology, we synthesized studies that quantitatively examined the effects of exposure to family violence on academic achievement among adolescents. We searched for peer-reviewed, English-language articles in nine online databases. Thirteen studies that examined adolescents were included, where family violence exposure was the independent variable and academic achievement was the dependent variable. Of those, nine studies identified significant, direct, and negative effects of family violence exposure on adolescent academic achievement, and a further two identified significant, indirect, and negative effects. We found reasonable evidence showing that adolescents’ academic achievement is negatively affected by exposure to family violence. Our review findings indicate the importance of implementing prevention strategies to reduce children’s exposure to family violence, and intervention for those who have been exposed to it. Future research should further examine the moderating and mediating mechanisms by which family violence exposure affects academic achievement.

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Objective Australia is a multicultural country experiencing rapid immigration. New migrant families offer diversity in important cultural practices such as parenting that can potentially contribute insights for Australian efforts to address public health challenges. Adolescent substance use differs between cultures, and the objective of this study was to investigate potential contributing factors to these differences. It was hypothesized that differing family management practices between cultural groups would predict adolescent substance use. Method This study utilized a large longitudinal study of adolescents in secondary schools in Melbourne, Australia (N = 2,080; aged 12.3 years, SD = 0.5 at study commencement; 55.5% female). Latent Class Analysis and multinomial regression were used to examine parenting factors and behaviors, and their association with the development of substance use among adolescents from different cultural backgrounds. Results Cross‐sectional analyses of adolescent reports revealed no significant differences in parenting style but higher levels of mother attachment, family rewards, and family opportunities among Australian‐born adolescents in comparison to non‐Australian‐born. We observed similar results for comparisons of English speaking only and non‐English Language Spoken at Home (LSH). Family management, non‐English LSH, alcohol use and antisocial behavior in Year 7 longitudinally predicted alcohol and cannabis use in Year 9, after multivariate control for other risk factors. Conclusion Indicators Cultural and linguistic diversity predicted longitudinal protective effects against adolescent substance use after multivariate adjustment for a range of family management factors. Given broad similarities in parenting style, future research should investigate the varied protective effect of cultural diversity factors across different substances.