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The most significant causes of adolescent morbidity and mortality in developed nations are related to risk-taking behaviours such as risky driving, substance use, unsafe sex, violence perpetration and injuries. 1 We previously reported findings from a nationally representative secondary school self-report survey carried out in New Zealand (NZ) in 2001, 2007 and 2012. 2–4 In brief, there were large improvements between 2001 and 2012 in overall population rates of major areas of risk taking, specifically: smoking, binge drinking, drug use, risky driving and violence perpetration. Some gains were greater in the 2001–2007 period and others in the 2007–2012 period (Fig. 1). 2 The initiation of sexual behaviour and teenage pregnancy also declined, although there was little change in condom or contraceptive use among sexually active students. We also found concurrent, generally small improvements in many determinants of health, including family relationships, school connectedness and violence exposure but not socio-economic indicators nor access to health care. Other critical health outcomes, including depression, physical activity and obesity, did not improve or worsen. 3, 4

Recent national data provide further evidence for decreases in substance use, 5, 6 risky driving behaviours7 and pregnancies8 among teenagers in NZ. National surveys from Europe, North America and Australia also report significant reductions in substance use, 9–13 physical fighting, injury-related mortality14 and risky motor vehicle use15 among young people. This suggests that declines in adolescent risk taking may be part of a wider trend in high-income countries …