Selecting an effective prevention program for a comprehensive intervention can be a daunting task. Not only must the program address the specific needs and assets of the defined population, but also there should be a level of confidence about its ability to produce positive outcomes regardless of differing settings and differing populations. The…

This guide presents a capacity building framework and process for demonstrating and documenting prevention outcomes. Achieving Outcomes was developed by the Center for Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP) in response to requests from the prevention field for guidance in selecting and implementing science-based prevention programs. The guide is…

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administrations Center for Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP) is responsible for identifying and disseminating scientifically defensible knowledge about proven prevention models and principles to the substance abuse prevention field. This booklet is intended to assist prevention practitioners and…

Large multi-site followup studies of treatment clients comprise a major source of evidence on the effectiveness of substance abuse treatment in the United States. This report considers challenges to the validity of results in treatment effectiveness studies due to four factors: (1) nonrandom entry to treatment from the population needing…

Presents findings of a study of the effectiveness of drug-abuse-prevention programs. Included a survey of 5,000 students and interviews with 249 students in 40 focus groups. Outlines components of effective drug education. (three references) (LMI)

This article reports on the lessons learned from a five-year, evidence-based substance abuse prevention initiative conducted in three school districts. Traditional outcome measures yielded no significant program effects, despite the use of an evidence-based curriculum. The failure to find significant statistical results is discussed in terms of…

The extremes of college student substance use and the negative consequences students face as a result of such use are of great public health concern. Although a multitude of campus-based substance abuse prevention efforts have appeared in literature, a clear picture of the programs and policies currently in use at colleges and universities is not…

In New South Wales, Australia, a cost-effectiveness evaluation was conducted of an adult drug court (ADC) program as an alternative to jail for criminal offenders addicted to illicit drugs. This article describes the program, the cost-effectiveness analysis, and the results. The results of this study reveal that, for the 23-month period of the…

Contingency management (CM) interventions usually use vouchers as reinforcers, but a new technique awards chances of winning prizes. This study compares these approaches. In community treatment centers, 142 cocaine- or heroin-dependent outpatients were randomly assigned to standard treatment (ST), ST with vouchers, or ST with prizes for 12 weeks.…

In contrast with the nearly 30 years of HIV/AIDS research with the hearing community, data on HIV infection among persons who are deaf and hard of hearing is primarily anecdotal. Although the few available estimates suggest that deaf and hard of hearing persons are disproportionately affected by HIV infection, no surveillance systems are in place…

This study examines whether program effects on mother-child relationship quality and effective discipline mediated the 6-year longitudinal effects of the New Beginnings Program (NBP) to improve mental health and competence outcomes in 218 adolescents from divorced families in a randomized experimental trial. The NBP is a theory-based and…

Rebecca Blank explores a weakness of the welfare reforms of the mid-1990s--the failure of the Temporary Assistance to Needy Families program to address the plight of so-called "hard to employ" single mothers and their children. TANF has moved many women on the welfare caseload into work, but the services it provides are not intensive or flexible…

Student life educators continue searching for ways to assess campus programs. This is an exploratory study for an alternative assessment approach based on a hypothesized relationship between participation in campus activities, student self-efficacy, and student dispositions toward aspects of mental health and substance abuse. Focusing on the…

Two experimental conditions, a manualized cognitive-behavioral anger-control treatment incorporating empowerment strategies and a relapse-prevention treatment without the anger-control component, were compared to assess their impact on levels of trait anger and attributional styles of women recovering from alcohol and drug addiction. Participants…

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine characteristics of resilience among Australian adolescents, the extent to which resilience might be strengthened through participation in a dance/drama competition, the Rock Eisteddfod Challenge (REC), and the impact participation may have on health related behaviour. Design/methodology/approach: …