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Educational and family approaches to drug prevention for young people
Published in Ilana B. Crome, Richard Williams, Roger Bloor, Xenofon Sgouros, Substance Misuse and Young People, 2019
Drug education has a narrower focus than prevention, namely, to provide opportunities for pupils to develop their knowledge, skills, attitudes and understanding about drugs and appreciate the benefits of a healthy lifestyle, relating this to their own and others’ actions (Department for Children, Schools and Families, 2004). Some researchers, for example, Stead et al. (2010), argue that drug education interventions are generally neutral or have a limited positive effect. They also draw attention to the possible negative impacts of some educational interventions, although they note that it would be unfair to say that these outcomes are directly attributable to these activities. EMCDDA (www.emcdda.europa.eu/best-practice/prevention/school-children) asserts that interventions aimed at disadvantaged students and peer-led interventions have shown promising results. However, although there has been a growth in the evidence base for school interventions, it continues to be the case that most prevention programmes are not evaluated. Where evaluation has taken place, Gorman et al. (2007) have also asserted ‘far from supporting the evaluators’ claims concerning the rigour of the findings and their generalisability and public health significance, the results are fragile, of little practical significance and quite possibly analysis-dependent’.
Listening to young people’s perspectives in relation to adolescent health
Published in Ruth Chambers, Kirsty Licence, AI Aynsley-Green, Looking after Children in Primary Care, 2018
Since then, the updated Drug Strategy10 encompasses GPs and other primary healthcare professionals (as Tier 1 professionals - seeChapter 9) to become involved with helping drugs misusers. This may be by supporting teachers in delivering drugs education in primary schools or as part of personal social and health education in secondary schools. Fiona’s and Dan’s views emphasise the importance of such education in schools [seeBox 18.10).
What Works: Part I—Education
Published in Thomas C. Rowe, Federal Narcotics Laws and the War on Drugs, 2013
The Michigan Model that began in 1984 is a program used at 90 percent of the public schools in Michigan and is more comprehensive than DARE or LST. Drug education begins in grade seven and continues into high school. It is combined with several other health issues, including diet, violence, exercise, and sexually transmitted diseases. Some components of the program, such as sex education, have faced opposition from parents who feel it is too explicit. However, the program is continuing.
“Here’s the ‘kicker’: School factors associated with opioid misuse among US African American Youth
Published in Journal of Ethnicity in Substance Abuse, 2023
Andrew Yockey, Keith King, Rebecca Vidourek
Although not significant, it was estimated that nearly 33% of youth reported they had never had drug education in schools. Drug education has been shown to be a protective factor against the initiation of substance use and initiation (McBride, 2003). Consequently, the current drug education curricula offer mixed results (McBride, 2003). Education initiatives for schools should incorporate risk factors, peer factors, and school factors for school drug education programs. The National Institute on Drug Abuse (2011), for example, highlights several avenues for drug education programs, including methods geared toward change, activities, and praise for appropriate behavior for not initiating drug use. Furthermore, future research should examine how individual behaviors are influenced by school-level factors. Efforts to create a more-positive school environment may prove beneficial for decreasing substance-use related behaviors (Gottfredson, 2017).
Drug use characteristics and correlates of multiple risk behaviors among synthetic drug users
Published in Journal of Substance Use, 2021
Qun Zhao, Yuchen Mao, Xiaoming Li, Yu Zheng
The suicide attempt was the only risk behavior that female participants were more likely to have engaged in than their male counterparts. Gender differences in the underlying psychological motivations and coping mechanisms may help explain the finding (MacArthur et al., 2012; Madge et al., 2011). When experiencing stressful conditions, women were more vulnerable to depression and more likely to engage in self-harm behaviors including suicide attempts (Hallfors et al., 2004; Lewinsohn et al., 2001). In the current study, more than half of the female participants reported having a drug craving when feeling bad (60.4%), and having used drugs alone (65.5%), which indicates that females were more vulnerable to drug use when being affected by unhealthy emotions, and to self-harm when using drugs without peer supervision. These gender differences suggest that drug education and intervention should be tailored to meet gender-specific needs.
Review of international programs fighting against drugs
Published in Journal of Substance Use, 2021
Aliye Göçmen, Nur Derin, Ahmet Metin, Mehmet Emin Öztürk, İ. Afşin Kariper
Intervention in early adolescence is crucial. This period is a development period in which individuals live emotional, physical and social changes. Individuals reported to have used drugs in early adolescence continue to use it in late adolescence and switch to more serious substances in their future. Successful interventions in early adolescence may minimize substance use and related health problems of the following years (Gosin et al., 2003). For this reason, drug prevention and harm reduction programs are usually implemented in schools. Despite many prevention programs, young people continue to try substance and get used to them. This may be due to the improper implementation of the programs, lack of appealing target group, or lack of interactivity. Interactive programs should be a part of an effective drug education (Rosenbaum, 2016; Tobler & Stratton, 1997). Cuijpers (2002b) who concluded that there is no single criterion for an effective drug fighting model, suggested to add life skills to the program. In addition to the inclusion of life skills, emotional awareness of the individual is another significant factor (Linehan, 1993). People who are unaware or partially aware of their emotions and who are unable to make emotional arrangements may tend to use substance (Trull et al., 2000). Therefore, a holistic approach is necessary for the fight against drugs to be effective. For example, the initiatives covering the relationships with peers (Cuijpers, 2002a) and parents may be more functional.