Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica, 118 (3), 230‐237 DOI: 10.1111/j.1600‐0447.2008.01214.x Demographic correlates of psychotic‐like experiences in young Australian adults J. Scott 1,2 , J. Welham 3 , G. Martin 2 , W. Bor 4 , J. Najman 5 , M. O'Callaghan 4 , G. Williams 5 , R. Aird 6 , J. McGrath 2,3,7 1 Child & Youth mental Health Service, Royal Children's Hospital, Herston , 2 Department of Psychiatry, University of Queensland, St Lucia , 3 Queensland Centre for Mental Health Research, The Park Centre for Mental Health, Wacol , 4 Mater Children's Hospital, South Brisbane , 5 School of Population Health, University of Queensland, Herston , 6 School of Public Health, Queensland University of Technology, Kelvin Grove and 7 Queensland Brain Institute, University of Queensland, St Lucia, Qld, Australia Correspondence to John McGrath, Queensland Centre for Mental Health Research, The Park Centre for Mental Health, Wacol, Qld 4076, Australia. E‐mail: john_mcgrath@qcmhr.uq.edu.au KEYWORDS: psychosis  age factors  gender differences ABSTRACT Objective: Psychotic‐like experiences (PLE) in the general community are common. The aims of this study were to examine the prevalence and demographic correlates of PLE in young adults. Method: The sample consisted of 2441 subjects aged 18–23 years. Subjects completed the Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI) and the 21‐item Peters Delusional Inventory (PDI). Associations between age, gender, hallucinations and delusions were examined using logistic regression. Results: Both CIDI hallucinations and delusions predicted high scores on the PDI. Younger age was significantly associated with endorsement of CIDI delusions [odds ratio (OR) = 0.66, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.48–0.92) and with PDI total scores (OR = 0.68, 95% CI 0.55–0.83). Women were significantly more likely to endorse items related to hallucinations (OR = 1.49, 95% CI 1.14–1.95) but not delusions. Conclusion: PLE are common in young adults. The mechanisms underpinning the age and gender gradients in PLE may provide clues to the pathogenesis of psychotic disorders. Introduction Several large population‐based studies have reported an unexpectedly high prevalence of psychotic‐like experiences (PLE) in the community (1–5 ). Some have suggested that the psychosis should be modelled on a continuum (5 ), from those in the community who report the occasional delusion or hallucination to those with disabling symptoms and significant distress. However, before constructing such models, we need a more detailed knowledge of the prevalence and demographic correlates of PLE in the general population. The first wave of studies that reported on PLE in general population samples relied on psychosis screening items within general diagnostic instruments. For example, the Eastern Baltimore Mental Health Survey (2 ), using the Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI) (6 ), reported that 10% of subjects had paranoid beliefs and over four percent of subjects 'heard things that others could not hear'. The Netherlands Mental Health Survey and Incidence Study (NEMESIS) (7 ) examined 7076 subjects aged 18–64, also used the Copyright Blackwell Synergy 2008. The definitive version is available at www.blackwell‐synergy.com