Dr Justin Coulson's Happy Families

The more you monitor your kids, the more they might hide.
Research on parental monitoring shows that knowing where your kids are matters far less than creating a relationship where they feel safe telling you what is really going on. Justin and Kylie Coulson unpack what the research says about disclosure, surveillance, rules and trust, and share five practical ways to help your kids keep talking when things go wrong.
KEY POINTS
Why kids' voluntary disclosure tells parents more than surveillance
How negative reactions can lead to more secrecy
Why punishment can shut down honesty
How to respond when your child tells you something difficult
Why clear reasons and autonomy-supportive rules build trust
Why covert snooping can make kids sneakier
How to stay connected as children become more independent
The difference between emotion for your child and emotion at your child
QUOTE OF THE EPISODE
“Location apps will show you where they are, but only the relationship that you have will tell you how they are.”
RESOURCES MENTIONED
Stattin and Kerr's 2003 research on parental monitoring and disclosure
Weinstein and Schabulski's research on autonomy-supportive parenting
ACTION STEPS FOR PARENTS
Take a breath before reacting when your child tells you something difficult.
Say, “I’m glad you told me,” before jumping into consequences.
Focus on solving the problem rather than punishing the disclosure.
Explain why your rules exist and give your child choices where you can.
Create regular opportunities to talk without turning every conversation into an interrogation.
Get curious, not furious.
Don't rely on covert snooping to find out what your child is doing.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Australia made global headlines when it introduced a minimum age of 16 for social media. But months on, more than eight in 10 kids are still using age-restricted platforms.
Justin Coulson sits down with Federal Communications Minister Anika Wells to ask what is happening, why compliance has been so difficult, and what the new Digital Duty of Care could mean for families.
The proposed laws go beyond social media to cover gaming, AI chatbots and other online platforms, with new requirements around harmful content and addictive design features such as endless scrolling and popularity metrics.
KEY POINTS
Why compliance with the under-16 social media laws has been slower than expected
Why the responsibility needs to sit with big tech, not exhausted parents
What the proposed Digital Duty of Care could change
How AI, gaming, chatbots and other platforms will be covered
The harmful content and design features the government wants platforms to address
What age verification means for access to pornography
Why VPNs and other workarounds make online safety harder
The early signs that some young Australians are sleeping better, playing more sport and seeing less online bullying
QUOTE OF THE EPISODE
“This is about introducing some basic safety standards to an industry that hasn’t had any.”
Anika Wells
RESOURCES MENTIONED
Australia’s under-16 social media legislation
The proposed Digital Duty of Care
eSafety Commissioner research and long-term studies
Australia’s online pornography age-verification laws
happyfamilies.com.au
ACTION STEPS FOR PARENTS
Talk with your kids about why these laws exist rather than making the conversation only about rules.
Keep an eye on the platforms, games and AI tools your children are using.
Pay attention to sleep, mood, sport, friendships and offline activities, not just screen-time minutes.
Use the law as a support when conversations about online safety become difficult.
Stay informed as the Digital Duty of Care develops.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What do you do when your 17-year-old refuses to go to school, skips classes and has no idea what he wants to do instead?
Justin and Kylie tackle a tricky question from a parent whose son is struggling with Year 11. They explore vocational schools, apprenticeships, TAFE, distance education and the idea that education doesn’t have to mean sitting in a classroom until Year 12. The goal is to help young people keep learning, contributing and moving forward without forcing them into a path that clearly isn’t working.
KEY POINTS:
Why school isn’t the only way to get an education
Vocational schools and hands-on learning
School-based apprenticeships and TAFE
Why “earning or learning” is a useful family expectation
Helping teenagers build character, reliability and practical skills
Why a 17-year-old doesn’t need their whole future figured out
Finding purpose through contribution and solving real problems
QUOTE OF THE EPISODE:
“You need to be either full-time earning or full-time learning.”
RESOURCES MENTIONED:
Boys: Building Strong Young Men from the Inside Out by Justin Coulson
The Industry School
School-based apprenticeships
TAFE and vocational education
Lift the Load 50 for 50 fundraiser for Top Blokes
ACTION STEPS FOR PARENTS:
Talk to your child’s school about alternative pathways.
Look beyond university and traditional Year 12 pathways.
Explore apprenticeships, TAFE, vocational schools and practical training.
Help your teenager find something that builds skills and a sense of contribution.
Take the pressure off having their entire future figured out at 17.
Focus on reliability, communication, initiative and integrity.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s Mrs Happy Families’ birthday week, so Justin puts Kylie on the spot with questions she hasn’t seen before. There are childhood confessions, a $2 garage sale bargain, a surprising celebrity crush, competitive board games, laundry, parenting wisdom and one deeply meaningful question about how she hopes her six children will remember her.
Kylie also opens up about setting herself a big goal, learning to value the progress rather than just the number, and the moment she realised she could be proud of herself.
It’s funny, honest and unexpectedly moving.
KEY POINTS:
Why Kylie thinks her daughter Abby is most like her
The $2 garage sale find that became a handmade baby quilt
Why laundry is Kylie’s favourite household job
Kylie’s surprising running anthem
The competitive streak Justin insists she has
The parenting moment that made Kylie most proud
What Kylie hopes her children remember about her
QUOTE OF THE EPISODE:
“I would rather be 10 kilos lighter at the end of the year and not reach my goal of 20 kilos than to be sitting where I was at the beginning of the year without any hope or a desire to make the changes necessary.”
ACTION STEPS FOR PARENTS:
Ask yourself what you hope your children will remember about you when they are adults.
Notice the progress you are making instead of focusing only on whether you have reached the goal.
Ask your children what they love most about you. Their answers might surprise you.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

More than eight in ten Australian kids were still using age-restricted social media platforms months after the under-16 law came into effect. So is the legislation working?
Justin speaks with Federal Communications Minister Anika Wells about what has happened since the social media minimum age law began, why compliance has been slower than expected, and what the new Digital Duty of Care could mean for families.
The proposed laws go much further than social media. They cover AI chatbots, online games, messaging platforms and other digital services, with new responsibilities for tech companies to identify and reduce risks to children.
They also tackle harmful content, addictive design features, algorithmic feeds and the growing challenge of keeping kids safe from pornography and other dangerous material online.
KEY POINTS
Why more than 80% of children were still using age-restricted platforms
Why enforcement against big tech takes time
What the Digital Duty of Care would change for parents
How AI chatbots, gaming and messaging platforms could be covered
The harmful content platforms would have to address
What "safety by design" could mean for kids
How algorithmic feeds could change
The challenges created by VPNs and children accessing pornography
Why group chats and private sharing are harder for parents to monitor
What the government says is changing for young Australians
QUOTE OF THE EPISODE
"We want you to be able to say, this is the law and you can point to the law to try and address these daily fights that people are having in their home."
ACTION STEPS FOR PARENTS
Talk with your kids about what they are seeing online, including content shared privately in group chats.
Check which social media, gaming, messaging and AI platforms your child is using.
Look at the feed settings on platforms your family uses and understand whether algorithmic recommendations can be changed.
Keep talking about pornography and harmful online content before your child encounters it.
Use Australia's changing online safety laws as a starting point for conversations about what is and isn't acceptable online.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.