Wellbeing

Dr Ryan Balzan hopes the smartphone app he is co-designing will one day make his role as a clinical psychologist obsolete. Only half joking, he says the goal of the “Thinking About Thinking” app is to intervene early before young people develop an eating disorder. Supported by the Firefly Children’s Foundation, the app targets key risk factors including perfectionism, rigid thinking and body image concerns – traits known to increase vulnerability in adolescents. Eating disorders are among the leading causes…

A superhero belt, a hearty dose of time in nature and a bit of dirt are helping shape a new approach to improving children’s health and development. Early career researcher Dr Kylie Dankiw drew on her childhood exploring creeks and their leafy surrounds in Adelaide’s north-eastern suburbs. “I was really, always really passionate about the environment and fascinated in the natural world and how things worked, and our connection to nature,” she said. “All I did was explore and find…

Immersive virtual reality could open up a whole new world for people with intellectual disability, enabling them to learn practical life skills much faster without relying on caregivers, according to a new study.  Australian researchers compared the effectiveness of immersive VR headsets and non-immersive virtual environments to teach 36 adults with an intellectual disability how to separate general waste from recycling, garden, and food organics. The study, undertaken by University of South Australia and UNSW Sydney researchers, involved 12 virtual…

Australian children aged between 10 and 12 recently took part in a small, feasibility study focusing on the easily accessible video game, Minecraft. The off-the-shelf game encourages players to work together to build 3D worlds from digital blocks. Consumers with lived experience, including autistic Minecraft players and parents of autistic Minecraft players, were involved in informing the design and implementation of the program. Participants had the opportunity to play the game in both online and face-to-face settings. The low intensity…

Children reap enormous rewards from participating in organised sport or physical activities. These include physical and social benefits, and assistance building emotional control, resilience and self-esteem – while providing a healthy outlet from life’s daily pressures. Every Australian state has its version of an incentive program that focuses on getting more children participating in organised physical activities. In South Australia, the State Government’s Sports Vouchers program has disbursed more than $48 million since it launched in 2015, helping ease the…

Zero-alcohol drinks (<0.5% alcohol) resemble alcohol in appearance and taste and are often closely linked to a parent alcohol brand yet there are currently no age or marketing restrictions on these drinks, and they are freely promoted to all age groups, including young people.  In an Australian first, and funded by the Channel 7 Children's Research Foundation, Flinders University researchers will examine the impact of the rapidly growing zero-alcohol drinks market on young people’s perceptions of alcohol to determine if…