Major approaches to school-based substance abuse prevention for adolescents are reviewed, and school organizational issues for the implementation of such programs are considered. The need for multi-level interventions including parents, the community, and the media is discussed. Three models of school-based substance abuse prevention programs are…

Describes a graduate course for teaching therapists about the contributions that have been made to the understanding and treatment of substance abuse by family researchers, theorists, and clinicians. Delineates course purpose, student selection, instructional methods, and course content. (Author)

A 1993 Texas survey found that non-Hispanics were significantly more likely than Hispanics to report lifetime alcohol or drug use or past-year alcohol use. Among Hispanics, drug and alcohol use increased with acculturation. Among lifetime drug abstainers, health concerns was the most frequently cited reason for abstention for both groups; other…

Explores alcohol consumption (and other substance abuses) at historically black colleges compared with nonblack colleges and universities. The paper explores the consequences of alcohol and other drug use and examines what is known about binge drinking. Comparative research indicates far less drinking and substance abuse at black colleges. (GR)

Discusses the nature and extent of problem of prenatal drug exposure. Expresses concern about the increase in number of women of childbearing age testing positive for drug use. Explains the social, cognitive, behavioral, and motor deficiencies resulting from such drug exposure and consequent issues and recommendations for early childhood…

Reviews the addictive nature of cigarette smoking and the pharmacologic, psychological, and sociocultural parameters of tobacco use. The dynamic combination of related factors makes cigarette smoking extremely resistant to long-term extinction. The article suggests the use of active support systems during nicotine addiction recovery. (SM)

There are strong theoretical and empirical rationales for believing that psychological processes are integral to the maintenance of smoking behavior. A comprehensive treatment program for chronic cigarette smokers must have, at its foundation, interventions addressing the psychological processes that maintain smoking. The article examines the…

Using an approach to the analysis of missing data, this study investigated developmental trends in alcohol, marijuana, and cigarette use among 750 adolescents across 5 years using multiple-group latent growth modeling. Latent variable structural equation modeling and missing data approaches to studying developmental change are explored. (SLD)

Addresses whether present generations of adolescents and adults worldwide are at greater risk of developing suicidal reactions than previous generations and what the possible causal mechanisms involved are. Possible causal mechanisms include: prevalence of depression, prevalence of substance abuse, psychobiological changes, increased stressors,…

Investigates the extent to which at-risk adolescents express different values than their parents and adolescents and parents in a control group. The beliefs of parents of at-risk adolescents were not significantly different from those of the control group; however, the at-risk students' beliefs were different from all groups. The age difference…

Reports results of comparing two screening instruments designed to identify youth with substance use problems. For one out of five youths, the two instruments gave different diagnoses. The instruments do not predict adolescent problems or substance use over time substantially better than a simpler measure of the frequency of substance use. (LKS)

A nationwide survey of 109 teachers of students with behavioral disorders found little programming concerning prevention of substance abuse. Teachers differed in their priority assignment of substance abuse prevention and reported the absence of parental involvement in such efforts. Lack of time, curriculum materials, and adequate funding were…

Although the Americans with Disabilities Act prevents employers from discriminating against the disabled in hiring practices, it exempts current illegal users of drugs, as distinct from alcoholics. The specific requirements of the law regarding persons with alcoholism are reviewed and contrasted with those concerning current drug users, and…

Reviews recent case law and state statutes for dealing with a pregnant woman's actions which negatively affect her infant. Explains how statutes and case law are applied in civil law to remove a child from the mother at birth and in criminal law to punish a mother while pregnant. (MM)

Comparison of drug use patterns of 43 secondary school students with behavioral disorders and 43 students without behavioral disorders indicated that 51 percent of students with behavior disorders evidenced high drug use patterns in comparison to 14 percent of the nonhandicapped group. Low drug use was reported by only 28 percent of students with…