Australian Statistics
Australia has two major data collection instruments that examine the use of alcohol and other drugs (AOD). The Australian Secondary Students Alcohol and other Drug (ASSAD) survey provides information on the AOD use of school-based young people and is conducted by the Centre for Behavioural Research in Cancer, Cancer Council Victoria. The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) conducts the National Drug Strategy Household Survey which examines the prevalence of drug use across the general community.
Although it is useful to look at trends over time, it can be difficult to locate some of the older reports. Some are no longer available. PDF downloadable copies of those that are available can be found at the following links:
Australian Secondary Students Alcohol and other Drug (ASSAD) survey
The ASSAD survey explores adolescent substance use in Australia. Every three years, up to 30,000 secondary school students aged 12 to 17 take part and the latest survey, ASSAD 2017 was the twelfth survey in a series conducted from 1984. Smoking and alcohol use have been measured across the entire survey series, while the section on use of other substances has been included since 1996.
A PPT of the key results of the 2017 ASSAD survey has been prepared by DARTA and is available for download.
National Drug Strategy Household Survey (NDSHS)
The NDSHS asks what Australians think about tobacco, alcohol and other drugs, as well as their use of these drugs. It was first conducted in 1985 and is held every three years. The 2019 survey is the 13th in the series, with over 22,000 people aged 14 and over taking part. Multiple methods are used to collect the data including a paper questionnaire, online and over the phone.
A PPT of some of the key results of the 2019 NDSHS has been prepared by DARTA and is available for download.