Violence prevention and intervention programmes for adolescents in Australia: a systematic review

Objective: This article reports the findings of a systematic review of the peer-reviewed published evaluation literature which documents the outcomes of Australian youth violence prevention programmes. Method: A total of 19 evaluation studies evaluating 17 different programmes implemented across Australia were identified and categorised in terms of whether they examined programme effects on bullying, alcohol and other drug-related violence, and antisocial/violent behaviour. Results: Evidence to support their effectiveness was mixed. The more successful programmes focus on both addressing known risk factors for violence and enhancing protective factors across individual, family, and community levels. Conclusions: There is a need to continue to evaluate the effects of adolescent violence prevention programmes to ensure that efforts to reduce youth violence in Australia are indeed successful.