This article discusses applications of education legislation for drug-addicted children, including the Education for All Handicapped Children Act and Sec. 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, which recognizes smoking and drug addiction as handicapping conditions. Suggested guidelines for parents seeking school support services under these laws…

This study evaluated the effectiveness of a training manual developed for speech-language pathologists for providing education and early detection of oral health problems secondary to smokeless tobacco use. With the addition of a clinical training module, the manual provided a method for expansion of the role of speech-language pathologists in…

Describes significant differences between the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) III-R and the DSM-IV. Focuses on the types of mental disorders counselors frequently diagnose and treat. These include several disorders included in the children's section as well as Adjustment Disorders, Substance-Related Disorders, and…

Potential methods are explored for removing or otherwise controlling random measurement error, assessment artifacts, irrelevant variation in outcome measures, and confounding sources of covariation in a structural equations model. Using examples with measures of quality of life and functioning, the authors consider these methods for field…

Project documented characteristics of teenage school dropouts and then compared the prevalence of risk-taking behavior of dropouts with those attending school. Of the sample (n=548), 15% had dropped out. Those still attending school engaged in suicide behavior more frequently than dropouts whereas the latter abused substances more. (RJM)

Reports the results of a study that examines differences in substance-related attitudes, use patterns, and related consequences among three typical college campuses in order to underscore the need for campuses to develop and market prevention/intervention programs based on the unique patterns inherent on their individual campuses. (LKS)

This case study of families of normal private preparatory school students and families of substance abusing/mood disordered students examines the relationship between substance abuse and mood disorders and the following factors: parental marital discord, degree of family satisfaction, and family problem-solving styles. Results showed that all…

Examined the role of individual characteristics and peer influences in evoking early substance abuse in young boys. Individual characteristics, such as fighting, hyperactivity, oppositional behaviors, and likability, were found to be pivotal in the development of substance abuse--more than friends' deviance. Results suggest that prevention…

Discusses the relationship between lifestyle choices and low birth weights and the opportunity that pregnancy offers women for adopting more healthful lifestyle behaviors. It reviews the literature that focuses on the roles of drug use, nutrition, stress, physical activity, employment, social support, violence, and sexually transmitted diseases in…

Summarizes research on the identification of children of substance abusers and on adolescents' views of their relationships with peers, family, and nonfamily adults. Implications for camp staff involve identifying and meeting the needs of children of substance abusers and demonstrating respect and understanding toward adolescent campers. (LP)

Describes Healing Wind, a community wellness and development program on the Passamaquoddy Reservation in Maine. Discusses the grassroots response to community problems such as substance abuse, school vandalism, and suicide; the program's foundation on cultural traditions such as the talking circle; formation of a core group to implement the…

Reviews theories about heavy alcohol and drug use among American Indians. Presents path models linking drug use of Indian and non-Indian adolescents to socialization characteristics: family strength and attitudes, religious identification, school adjustment, and peer drug associations (the most important factor). Lists risk factors for Indian…

A test with 1,446 high school students in Israel of a multidimensional model of adolescent drug use that incorporates sociodemographic variables, personality variables, cognitive variables, interpersonal factors, and the availability of drugs validated the model longitudinally. Results suggest that different legal and illegal substances share a…

Describes Under Pressure Program, innovative communication-centered approach designed to involve Chicago public junior and senior high school students in considering problems and prevention of adolescent substance abuse. Presents four integral parts of Under Pressure format: faculty/staff community inservice; theatrical performance;…

Discusses appropriate care for children affected prenatally or after birth by parental chemical dependence. There is increasing evidence that environmental intervention by professionals and other caring adults can alleviate these children's distress. Maximizing their development also depends on implementation of child welfare protections and the…