Investigating School Absenteeism and Refusal among Australian Children and Adolescents using Apriori Association Rule Mining

Abstract

Abstract Understanding the elusive reasons behind school refusal and absenteeism, which often vary, poses a challenge. This study aimed to uncover the hidden reasons for school absence in children and adolescents, aware of the negative consequences. A national survey of 2967 Australian children and adolescents aged 11 to 17 was conducted. The Apriori association rule generator of machine learning techniques and binary logistic regression were utilized to identify the factors linked to these behaviours and determine the most reliable predictors. Out of 2484, 83.7% (n = 2079) aged (11–17) years children and adolescents missed school for various reasons, 42.28% (n = 879) were (11–15) years old, 24.52% (n = 609) and 16.9% (n = 420) were 16- and 17-years old adolescents respectively. A considerable proportion of adolescents, specifically 16.4% (n = 407) and 23.4% (n = 486) of 16 and 17 years old, respectively, selected for the 'refused to say' alternative as their reason for not attending school. The lack of transparency in Australian children and adolescents' behaviour motives is associated with negative outcomes, including bullying, excessive internet/gaming, reduced family involvement, suicide attempts, and existential hopelessness. The widespread occurrence of school absence in Australia, including school refusal behaviour, emphasizes the need for interventions addressing root causes and promoting school engagement and meaningful pursuits.