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Background Higher educational attainment is important for economic wellbeing and associated with better health and longevity. Previous research focused on intelligence, socioeconomic status and mental health or individual risk behaviours as predictors of educational attainment, but the role of multiple domains of adolescent risk behaviours is less clear. This study examined the association between multiple domains of risk behaviour in adolescence and educational attainment by 22 years-of-age. Methods Young people (Generation 2, Gen2) and their parents (Generation 1, Gen1) participating in the Raine Study completed questionnaires at years 1, 5, 8, 10 (Gen1 only), 14, 17 (both) and 22 (Gen2 only). The Raine Study is an ongoing longitudinal study initiated in Perth, Western Australia, between 1989 and 1991. The 1,102 Gen2 participants who responded to questions about highest educational attainment were included in this study. The association between Gen2 self-reported risk behaviours (including age at commencement of drinking alcohol, smoking, sexual intercourse and drug use) and educational attainment (defined as self-reported years of completed high school: ≤ 10, 11, 12 or tertiary education (> 12)) at year 22, after adjusting for mother’s age and combined parental education level, participant sex, and family income, educational performance and adolescent mental health, was explored using ordinal regression models and presented as odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI). Results Ordinal models suggested that never smoking or starting older than 18 compared with smoking before age 15 (OR 2.02, 95%CI: 1.28–2.14); first drinking alcohol between 15 and 17 years compared with younger than 15 (OR 1.52, 95%CI: 1.08–2.14); and, first sexual intercourse aged ≥ 18 years compared with under 15 (OR 1.67, 95%CI: 1.08–2.57) were associated with higher levels of educational attainment at 22-year follow-up. Additionally, lower (“better”) behavioural scores increased the odds of higher levels of attainment. Conclusions Absence of health risk behaviours at a younger age or later commencement was associated with higher educational attainment. Evidence-based interventions that address the societal influences underpinning risk behaviours in adolescents may support longer school retention.

To examine the role of neighbourhood, what Bronfenbrenner describes as an element in the exosystem, as a protective asset for adolescents’ social and emotional wellbeing. The study used a subset of national data reported by adolescents and their parents from the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (LSAC). A linear mixed-effect model was used to estimate the association between neighbourhood indicators and trajectories in a measure of social and emotional wellbeing (the SDQ Total Difficulties score) at ages 12–13, 14–15 and 16–17, controlling for age and sex, peer and family relationships and household material resources. The analysis revealed that parents’ perceptions of belonging and their subjective assessments of the condition of housing in the neighbourhood, as well as externally sourced data on neighbourhood accessibility and socio-economic status, were significantly associated with adolescents’ total difficulties scores over time. The findings revealed the role of neighbourhood level protective assets as a potential influence on adolescents’ social and emotional wellbeing. Greater attention should be given to understanding the complex interactions between the resources mobilised by individuals and their families, and the influence of wider environments and social structures on young people’s social and emotional wellbeing.

Among various alcohol and other drug (AOD) use treatment programs for adolescents, residential Therapeutic Community (TC) approach has received very little research attention, despite evidence showing that adolescents in residential program have severe AOD-use, psychiatric comorbidities, criminal involvement, and other related problems. Most extant research show improved AOD-use, health and related outcomes of residential program for adolescents in the short-term. There is very little rigorous research evaluating longer-term outcomes, with existing studies showing inconsistent findings. Therefore, important knowledge gaps exist. This study aims to address gaps by investigating post-program long-term patterns of mortality, AOD-use, and mental health outcomes and associated pre-treatment factors of adolescents referred to a residential TC program. The sample included 3529 adolescents (13-18 years; median referral age=16.8 years; 73% male; 43% Aboriginal Australians; 51% justice-involved; 26% with severe/clinical psychological distress) referred to an Australian residential TC program called Program for Adolescents Life Management (PALM) using data-linkage following up to 16 years. I examined crude and standardised mortality rates, causes of deaths, post-PALM crude AOD- and MH-hospitalisation rates, and conducted growth mixture modelling (GMM) to identify distinct long-term AOD- and MH-hospitalisation trajectories, and multinomial logistic regressions to determine pre-treatment predictors of those trajectories. Findings showed substantially higher mortality rate for the cohort, five times higher than the general population of same age-group. Two-thirds of deaths involved AOD, caused primarily by overdose (mainly opioids), suicide, and transport accidents. Both AOD- and MH-hospitalisation crude rates were substantially elevated for the cohort, one hospitalisation in five person-years. Mortality and hospitalisation rates were higher for females, Aboriginal Australians, older participants, those with greater psychological distress, and treatment-attending groups (vs non-attend group). Trajectory analyses showing one-third of participants having higher AOD- and MH-hospitalisation trajectories indicate no evidence of treatment effects for these subgroups including Aboriginal Australians, females, older participants, those with greater psychological distress, unstable living, cannabis and opioids as drug of concern (DoC). Two-thirds, mainly younger, non-Aboriginal, those with lower psychological distress, stable living, and justice-involved participants, demonstrated improved outcomes. Finding of justice-involved participants showing improved outcomes prompt further research examining full extent of this relationship. Findings of poor outcomes for Aboriginal Australians, females, those with severe pre-treatment psychological problems, cannabis and opioids as DoC highlight the importance of early-screening and tailored, culturally-safe, evidence-based integrated interventions, and longer and effective continuing care. Further research is needed to evaluate whether one AOD-program can address comorbidity and range of needs among diverse adolescents referred.

There is limited evidence on heterogenous co-developmental trajectories of internalizing (INT) and externalizing (EXT) problems from childhood to adolescence and predictors of these joint trajectories. We utilized longitudinal data from Raine Study participants ( n = 2393) to identify these joint trajectories from 5 to 17 years using parallel-process latent class growth analysis and analyze childhood individual and family risk factors predicting these joint trajectories using multinomial logistic regression. Five trajectory classes were identified: Low-problems (Low-INT/Low-EXT, 29%), Moderate Externalizing (Moderate-EXT/Low-INT, 26.5%), Primary Internalizing (Moderate High-INT/Low-EXT, 17.5%), Co-occurring (High-INT/High-EXT, 17%), High Co-occurring (Very High-EXT/High-INT, 10%). Children classified in Co-occurring and High Co-occurring trajectories (27% of the sample) exhibited clinically meaningful co-occurring problem behaviors and experienced more adverse childhood risk-factors than other three trajectories. Compared with Low-problems : parental marital problems, low family income, and absent father predicted Co-occurring and High Co-occurring trajectories; maternal mental health problems commonly predicted Primary Internalizing, Co-occurring , and High Co-occurring trajectories; male sex and parental tobacco-smoking uniquely predicted High Co-occurring membership; other substance smoking uniquely predicted Co-occurring membership; speech difficulty uniquely predicted Primary Internalizing membership; child’s temper-tantrums predicted all four trajectories, with increased odds ratios for High Co-occurring (OR = 8.95) and Co-occurring (OR = 6.07). Finding two co-occurring trajectories emphasizes the importance of early childhood interventions addressing comorbidity.

Agriculture is the backbone of Nepal's economy, with the Terai region, characterized by fertile alluvial soil, hosting the majority of irrigation systems. However, ageing infrastructure, inadequate maintenance, and poor project prioritization have severely impacted agricultural productivity. This study addresses these challenges by employing a multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) approach to prioritize irrigation projects based on critical performance indicators such as water conveyance efficiency, application efficiency, and cropping intensity. Field data, including soil moisture, infiltration rates, and evapotranspiration, along with survey data, were utilized to assess five irrigation projects. Results identified the Kiran Nala Lift Irrigation Project as the highest priority for maintenance, while the Rajapur Irrigation Project ranked the lowest. This pioneering application of MCDM in Nepal's irrigation sector provides a robust framework for project prioritization, offering critical insights for improving agricultural productivity through targeted interventions. Practical Applications: This research applies the MCDM approach to assess irrigation projects based on nine key criteria, including efficiency metrics and environmental factors. By systematically addressing the infrastructure and management challenges, this study provides a scientific basis for optimizing irrigation project operations. The findings serve as an actionable tool for policymakers to enhance agricultural output by prioritizing the maintenance of critical irrigation systems.