Journal of Drug Education

Baer, Paul E.; McLaughlin, Robert J.; Burnside, Mary A.; Pokorny, Alex D.

doi: 10.2190/Q77V-486M-B7QU-P4WJpmid: 3199286

Two preventive intervention programs on alcohol and other substance use were devised for classrooms of junior and senior high school students. One program focused on resistance to social influence, and the other on attitude change and decision making. Youngsters undergoing these interventions were compared with controls who had no intervention on both alcohol usage measures and nonusage psychosocial indices at a pre-intervention baseline, at one-year post-intervention for tenth graders, and at two-year post-intervention for seventh graders. No difference in outcome between the two interventions was found for tenth graders, but one-year post-intervention tenth graders who had either of the interventions used less alcohol than controls. Nonusage measures were not affected. Seventh graders showed no usage effects of interventions two years post-intervention, but the nonusage measures suggested more prosocial behavior. Also among seventh graders, those with a high score on peer or parent alcohol use modeling responded better to the social resistance intervention, while those with a low score responded better to the attitudinal intervention.

Adams, Tom; West, Barbara

doi: 10.2190/AMXP-T9FW-E48E-FDJHpmid: 3199287

For many years the main support of the private sector for drug abuse prevention programs came through money resources channeled through general agencies of community assistance, such as the United Way. In the 1970s, the approach began to change and diversify as the negative social impact of drugs became more visible and far-reaching. Throughout all strata of society and within the workplace itself, more lives than ever before were affected by the abuse of drugs. A national problem was identified, highlighted by deaths due to overdose of celebrities, respected community members, and/or their children. The abuse of dangerous drugs, no longer confined to the nation's slums and minority communities, proliferated with the more tolerant social attitudes of the 1960s and 1970s. It soon became evident that not to take a stand would only make the problem worse, and that prevention would be far less costly in both human suffering and financial funding than trying to treat problems after the fact. On a different front, studies of manpower productivity revealed that the abuse of chemicals by employees was costly, and not to acknowledge and do something about it even costlier. In response, some companies designed and implemented Employee Assistance Programs, while others insisted on broader insurance coverage to support the in- and out-patient treatment of chemically dependent employees and their families. Still others looked for ways they could become involved in preventing the problem in the first place. Employee health or fitness centers were one result of this growing interest. Active support of projects designed to prevent drug use among young people was another.

Kline, Michael V.; Bacon, John D.; Greenless, Robert

doi: 10.2190/3BLE-L8MD-9CYN-AWTJpmid: 3199288

Multiple offender drinking driver program (MODDP) participants who are admitted to non-drinking driver alcohol treatment programs may constitute a high risk group of problem drinkers. There are little data that describe this “dual participant.” This paper presents findings from a study which identified 2,525 dual participants utilizing public sector alcohol treatment programs. The dual participant study population was highly representative of the 30,801 MODDP-only participants with regard to demographic characteristics. Over one-half of the dual participants had their initial admission into residential treatment programs which serve individuals who generally have serious and chronic alcohol-related problems. There is some evidence that dual participants are less successful in these programs than non-dual participants. Study findings strongly support the need for drinking driver programs to be aware of the high risk group of dual participants and for alcohol-related treatment programs to provide drinking and driving education to all dual participants who drive.

Johnson-Greene, Douglas; Fatis, Michael; Sonnek, Donna; Shawchuck, Carita

doi: 10.2190/6A9P-6Q58-VJW9-2JJXpmid: 3199289

While caffeine ingestion is commonplace, there is a relative lack of research on normative standards of caffeine consumption. The present investigation surveyed two hundred and seventy students at a midwestern state university concerning their consumption of various caffeine products. The results of the investigation suggest that there is an identifiable group of individuals who use excessive amounts of caffeine. The survey has also identified several deleterious effects that may be related to caffeine use. The most important finding of the study was that roughly 75 percent of the individuals who use caffeinated products rarely sought information concerning the caffeine content of the products they were using nor did they attempt to avoid substances containing caffeine. Suggestions for education and prevention are offered.

Pascale, Pietro J.; Sylvester, Joseph

doi: 10.2190/25XG-VVE3-JW77-25CXpmid: 3199290

The purpose of this study was to analyze the trends for almost a decade of self report drug survey data collected from high school students. Four large-scale surveys were conducted at three-year intervals beginning in 1977. The four cohort samples consisted of eleventh grade students from area high schools in Northeast Ohio. Frequency of usage, reason for taking drugs, and perceived harmfulness of fourteen categories of drugs are presented. Sex differences in drug use and perceived harmfulness are reported. The most recent survey questionnaire in 1986 also included several questions about smokeless tobacco use. It is important for researchers to be continuously vigilant in the assessment of the drug abuse problem since intervention and prevention strategies follow closely the sociodynamics of age, sex, knowledge of health risk factors, type of drug being used, and reason for taking drugs. The collection of trend data is essential in providing “benchmark” guides for the interpretation of single survey results [1]. Wolford and Swisher have indicated that knowledge of trends is useful in planning and developing drug programs [2].

Kim, Sehwan

doi: 10.2190/17CJ-923L-BFHA-36T2pmid: 3199291

This study reports short- and long-term outcome evaluation results of an alcohol education prevention program entitled “Here's Looking at You (HLAY)” as implemented by one of the largest school districts in the nation during 1982–1987. Since the adoption of this program as a demonstration project by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, the program has become one of the most widely known alcohol education or prevention programs in the nation. In 1982, the program was adopted by the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools (CMS) and has been under continuous replication. On the basis of the most recent replication of the HLAY during the spring semester 1987 and on the basis of the CMS system-wide student drug survey in 1986, the program has been evaluated using the following criterion variables: knowledge gain; three subdimensions on the general attitude about alcohol, i.e., undifferentiated-primitive attitude, reward-associated attitude, and health-related attitude; intentions about future alcohol use; and the actual drinking behavior.On a short-term basis, 1) there has been a knowledge gain about alcohol and alcoholism on the part of the HLAY recipients between the pre and post tests of the Alcohol Education Evaluation Instrument (AEEI). However, this gain in the HLAY group was less than the knowledge gain observed among control group student; 2) in comparison to the students in the control group, there has been a positive attitudinal net gain among the HLAY recipients along the undifferentiated-primitive attitude about alcohol; 3) however, the HLAY was not able to impact upon the reward-associated attitude, health-related attitude, the intentions about future alcohol use, and the actual drinking behavior. On a long-term basis, the actual alcohol drinking pattern of the HLAY recipients was indistinguishable from those students who had not been exposed to the program.

Bangert-Drowns, Robert L.

doi: 10.2190/8U40-WP3D-FFWC-YF1Upmid: 3058921

Since the late 1960s, evaluators have examined the use of school-based alcohol and drug education programs as a means of substance abuse prevention. Narrative reviews of these evaluations agree on two points. The evaluations are generally of poor quality and they do not provide evidence that substance abuse education reduces drug use. This study used meta-analysis to review a carefully selected sample of evaluations in this area. Outcomes of thirty-three evaluations were statistically integrated. The meta-analysis showed that typical substance abuse education had its most positive effects on knowledge and attitudes, but was unsuccessful in changing the drug-using behaviors of students. Attitudinal effects were significantly higher when peers were used as instructional leaders and when group discussion was part of the instructional method. Furthermore, students who volunteered for substance abuse education reported lower drug use after treatment than did students who were required to participate in such programs.