and Alcohol Knowledge
The Effectiveness of Prevention Programs on Underage Drinking
and Alcohol Knowledge
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (2007) considers underage drinking a major public health problem. In 2008, emergency rooms treated around 190,000 juveniles for injuries related to alcohol abuse (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 2011). Alcohol is the most widely used drug by minors in the United States, accounting for 11% of all alcohol consumption. Binge drinking accounts for more than 90% of juvenile alcohol abuse. According to Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), even though the level of alcohol use among juveniles has dropped significantly from 2002-2010, juvenile alcohol consumption remains high for all age groups with the level of drinking increasing between age groups (Fig. 1). Nearly a quarter of minors aged 16-17, and roughly half of minors aged 18-20 reported using alcohol within the past month.
Underage drinking (i.e., consumption of ethanol-based alcoholic beverages by persons under age 21) is associated with problems at school, as students who drink have poor attendance and lower grades (Roebuck, French, & Dennis, 2004). Alcohol consumption is also related to various social problems, like fighting and hanging out with the wrong crowd, which in turn often lead to legal problems as those under the influence will drink and drive (Carpenter, 2007). According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), motor vehicle accidents are the leading cause of death among teenagers in the United States—in 2009, there were over 3,000 deaths of teens aged 15-19. Another 350,000 had to receive emergency treatment for injuries incurred in motor-vehicle accidents. Alcohol was involved in the great majority of cases. Underage drinking has also been linked to sexually-related diseases due to unprotected sex, as well as behavior-related problems, such as mental problems, depression, suicide/overdose deaths, homicide and risk of injury (Miller, Naimi, Brewer, & Jones, 2007; Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 2011; U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2007).
Various studies suggest that specific psychosocial risk factors (e.g., genetic predisposition, environmental influences, personality traits, and alcohol knowledge) are strongly associated with juvenile alcohol use (Miller, Naimi, Brewer, & Jones, 2007). As genetics determine the body’s tolerance to alcohol and propensity for alcoholism, or alcohol dependence, children of alcoholics have an increased risk for underage drinking (Holder et al., 2000; Miller, Naimi, Brewer, & Jones, 2007). Both peers and parents provide varying levels of environmental influences over juveniles’ attitudes towards alcohol, as well as over their accessibility to alcohol (Perry et al., 2000; Williams et al., 1999). Additionally, certain personality traits (e.g., impulsive, sensation-seeking, dependent) may be related to juveniles’ decision to either refrain from or try alcohol (Miller, Naimi, Brewer, & Jones, 2007). Finally, knowledge about alcohol’s effect on the brain, body, and behavior guides juveniles’ decisions to engage in underage drinking and seems to be the focus of most prevention programs (Perry et al., 2000; Wagenaar et al., 2000; Williams et al., 1999).
Personality Traits and Underage Drinking
Research has shown that certain personality traits, such as impulsivity, risk-taking, and sensation seeking, predispose juveniles to engage in alcohol usage (Arnett, 2005 as cited in NIAAA, 2006). Baer (2002, as cited in NIAAA, 2006) explained that sensation seeking and impulsivity, which are related to deviant behavior and non- compliance, are predictors of heavy drinking among juveniles. A high sensation-seeker or a risk-taker possesses a heightened need to participate in dangerous or risky behavior such as the consumption of alcohol which most times lead to other deviant behaviors.
The perception of young people often causes them to partake in risky activities, such as excessive drinking (i.e. consuming five or more drinks at one time). Young people who fail to avoid harm or harmful situations were prone to drinking and alcohol-related problems (Jones, 1998, as cited in NIAA, 2006). Many juveniles, due to the immaturity of their frontal lobes (involved in decision making and reasoning), engage in alcohol consumption (especially in large amounts and over short periods of time) because they feel invincible and do not perceive themselves as being vulnerable to negative, drinking-related consequences (Arnett, 2005, as cited in NIAA, 2006).
According to Jackson, (2005, as cited in NIAAA, 2006), anxiety disorders, negative moods, and the feeling of depression is likely to influence alcohol use. Lisansky and Gomberg (1982), and Mayer (1998) all cited in Tomori (1994) that high levels of depression, anxiety, low esteem, and low educational goals are all familiar personality traits that are associated with adolescent problem drinking. Teenagers often use alcohol to cope with these traits and feelings. Thompson (1989, as cited in Tomori, 1994), purported that alcohol is used to relieve stress, regulates moods, enhances communication skills, and boots low self esteem. This notion was also supported by Cooper et al. (2000, as cited in NIAAA, 2006) who found that individuals consume alcohol to cope with negative feelings.
Genetic Predisposition and Underage Drinking
The genetic predisposition to drink alcohol is believed to be inherited, but should be considered a risk factor rather than one’s destiny (Bowles Center for Alcohol Studies, 2012). Compared with children of nonalcoholic’s (non-COAs), children of alcoholic parents (COAs) have approximately four times greater risk of becoming alcoholics themselves (West & Prinz, 1987). Alcoholism or alcohol dependence is defined by the American Medical Association (AMA) as "a primary, chronic disease with genetic, psychosocial, and environmental factors influencing its development and manifestations." Many researchers examining the genetic predisposition for alcoholism will use either twin studies (e.g., Schwartz, 2009) or adoption studies (e.g., Beaver, Nedelec, Rowland, & Schwartz, 2012) to examine evidence of genetic etiology of alcoholism (e.g., Crowe, 2012). Monozygotic twins (i.e., identical twins sharing 100% genetic material) who are raised with a family history of alcoholism are twice as likely to abuse alcohol as dizygotic twins (i.e., fraternal twins)( NIAAA, 2012). Twin studies have shown that age at first drink may also environmentally mediate increased risk of alcohol dependence (Schwartz, 2009). Researchers have also found that sex may influence alcoholism as identical male twins are more likely than female identical twins to develop alcohol dependency (Crowe, 2012). These findings support the notion that genetics predispose a person to drink (National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), 2012).
Adoption studies have shown that an adopted child whose natural parents were alcoholic would have higher susceptibility for alcoholism than those whose natural parents were non-alcoholic (Beaver, Nedelec, Rowland, & Schwartz, 2012).
Risk factors may increase or decrease depending on a variety of environmental, social, and physiological factors that converge with genetics, including one’s tolerance to alcohol, metabolism, height and weight combination, etc. (NIAAA, 2006). Buddy (2007) found that individuals who have a family history of alcoholism exhibited a dysfunctional stress response prior to developing alcohol dependency. In contrast, individuals who did not have a family history of alcoholism exhibited a dysfunctional stress response following the development of alcohol dependency. In conclusion, the research demonstrates that the genes involved in alcoholism, combined with environmental factors, influence one’s susceptibility to alcohol dependence (Coloingwood, 2012).
Environmental
Adolescent drinking behavior is influence by many socializing agents, particularly parents and peers. According to Sancho, Miguel and Aldas (2011), parents have the most influence on a child’s development from early to mid adolescence. Kelly, Leonora, and Hunn (2002) explain underage drinking using Beck & Lockhart’s model of parental involvement as a product of low/ closed communication between parent and child. Low or closed communication between parent & child can be interpreted as no or little exchange of words between the two, this can lead to drinking since parents don’t warn their children about the harm & effects. In contrast, open communication between a parent and child reduces the possibility of underage drinking. Open communication can be interpreted as parents constantly exchanging words with their children about alcohol, and knowing about their where about. Another way that parents influence their adolescent’s use of alcohol is to model habitual alcohol consumption (Jackson, Heriksen, Dickinson, and Levine, 1997). Parents who drink provide accessibility to alcohol to their children since alcohol is easily found in their own house.
Peer interaction also contributes to underage drinking. According to Hood (1996), the approximate onset age of underage drinking is fifteen years. In mid to late adolescence, juveniles begin to interact more with their peers than with their parents, giving the former a greater influence in either diverting or engaging them in underage drinking (Palmqvist & Santavirta, 2006). Adolescents may begin drinking Alcohol to fill a social void at a time when others around them are also drinking (Windle et al., 2008). Accessibility to alcohol is commonly provided through associations with peers, particularly at parties (NSDUH, 2008). Adolescents’ need
Underage Drinking Prevention Programs
Two main types of prevention programs have targeted underage drinking, including school-based only interventions (e.g., Drug Abuse Resistance Education, DARE), that seek to educate juveniles about the risks of alcohol consumption; and environmental interventions (e.g., Project Northland), which engage schools and the community to curtail juvenile access to alcohol (Jones & Heaven, 1998). Project DARE is a drug prevention program implemented in 1983 for elementary schools, currently in use by 75% of U.S. school districts (Lynam et al., 1999). DARE is taught by police officers and focuses on how resistance to peer pressure to try or use drugs. Advocates of DARE, claim that the program has been proven a success in the prevention or reduction of juvenile drug use (Bonnie & O’Connell, 2004). However, an examination by Lynam et al. (1999) comparing students in the prevention group who received 16 weeks of instruction and those in the control group who learned about drugs as part of their health curriculum did not differ in terms of alcohol, cigarette, or marijuana use, attitudes toward drug use, or self-esteem. The results of their study underscore that prevention programs aimed at juveniles should target specific risk factors, should be implemented more regularly, and consider juvenile drug abuse within a social context.
Project Northland is a longitudinal, multi-phase experiment sponsored by The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism of the National Institutes of Health (NIAAA) based on social theories that focuses on developing alcohol resistance skills, as recommended by both the National Research Council (NRC), Institute of Medicine (IOM), and Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) (Bonnie, & O’Connell, 2004; Smith, Goldman, Greenbaum, & Christiansen, 1995). This prevention program uses multi-competent and multi-disciplinary strategies that address both intrinsic and extrinsic elements associated with underage drinking by simultaneously reducing the availability of alcohol and enforcing sanctions against drinking (Perry et al., 2002).
In the initial phase, services were provided to randomly selected group of sixth-graders who were then compared to a control group of eighth graders two-years later to evaluate alcohol-related clinical problems, the ability to procure alcoholic beverages, the tendency to use alcohol, drink heavily, ability to function in school, and family functioning before and after intervention. The results showed a significant reduction in alcohol consumption in the intervention cohort, especially among adolescents who reported no use of alcohol at the beginning of the study. Monthly and weekly drinking among eighth-graders in the intervention districts was 20% and 30% lower, respectively, compared to students in the control districts.
A minimal intervention consisting of a short classroom program was instituted in the next phase either during the 9th grade (5 sessions) or the 11th grade (6 sessions) that focused on alcohol-reduction education and other facets (e.g., community programs, parent education, social-legal consequences via mock trials). However, there was no intervention program of any kind during the next grade 10th and 12th respectively). Initial progress eroded, particularly when the shortened program was implemented in 11th grade (Perry et al., 2002). Thus, a ‘no intervention period’ clearly underscores the importance of sustained intervention throughout the adolescent year.
Criminological Theory: The Social Development Model
The most successful underage drinking programs operate under a community-based Social Development Model (SDM), which is based on external and internal theories of control (Lonczak, et al., 2001). The concept behind the external theory of control is that there are sociological factors outside the control of the individual that exert a psychological force to restrain the individual’s behavior within the boundaries set by society (Rotter, 1996). These forces include individuals like parents, teachers, or law enforcement officers; or institutions, like schools, youth groups or religious organizations. The SDM model adopts a risk-focused preventive strategy that strives to develop a youth’s bond with society by promoting the development of socially acceptable beliefs and standards (Lehman, Hawkins, & Catalano, 1994). Youth that have developed a bond with society also develop high standards of behavior and are less likely to break rules that lie outside the norm of acceptable behavior. Members of society can help create and maintain this bond by creating opportunities for the youth to become involved in society, by helping the youth develop the skills that will allow for greater participation in society, and by recognizing the youth’s contribution to society. Thus, successful underage drinking programs like Project Northland create opportunities for youths to strengthen bonds within the family, and create bonds within the community, through a wide variety of neighborhood, school, and church programs. By involving the full community in the program, Project Northland fostered an environment of sustained external social control. The concept behind the internal theory of control is that youth are capable of monitoring and controlling their own behavior, and that the stronger the external controls are, the stronger the internal controls become (Rotter, 1996). For example, were a youth to be faced with a situation where the youth is being pressured to drink, a strong bond with society will guide the youth into making the right choice and refuse the drink, because doing so would disappoint others.
The primary objective of this study is to develop and evaluate the effect of an expanded DARE juvenile alcohol prevention program on student alcohol knowledge and alcohol consumption.
Methods
Participants
Schools within the New York City School District (NYCSD) with the worst records of underage drinking problems will be recruited for this study. All students enrolled in the 6th grade at the start of the Fall Semester 2012 in these schools will be screened by pretest for the following criteria: (1) alcoholic parents, (2) low knowledge of alcohol, and (3) high risk personality traits. One hundred students (females, n=50; males, n=50) will be selected using available probability sampling out of the general pool of students who meet these criteria. The students will be selected to be representative of that particular school district in NYCSD in terms of racial and ethnic composition.
The students will then be randomized into Group 1 (n=50; females, n=25; males, n=25), to be assigned to a traditional DARE drinking intervention program, or to Group 2 (n=50; females, n=25; males, n=25), to be assigned to an extended DARE-Expanded drinking intervention program. The study will run from the Fall Semester 2012 to the Spring Semester 2019. At the end of the study, only those students who complete the full program will be evaluated for the outcome variables. A limitation of this study is that it will not be able to control for attrition because it will be comparing students who received one year of intervention versus students who received seven years of intervention.
Design
The study will be a two-group pretest-posttest experimental design. The independent variable is the type of alcohol prevention program. There will be two levels: (1) Group 1, assigned to a traditional DARE program consisting of 6th grade DARE intervention followed by regular Health classes during the 7th-12th grades, and (2) Group 2, assigned to the expanded DARE-Expanded program consisting of DARE intervention during the 6th through the 12th grade. Two dependent variables will be used to determine success of the programs, knowledge of alcohol and alcohol consumption. The SAQ will be administered at the beginning of the 6th grade and at the end of each school year for the duration of the study.
Materials and Scoring
Materials. Measurement of variables related to the goals of the intervention programs includes the administration of an online computer-assisted self-interviewing (CASI) questionnaire to enhance confidentiality and encourage higher rates of self-reporting. The Student Alcohol Questionnaire (SAQ) (Engs, 1975) was chosen for this study for its well-proven validity (please refer to Spearman-Brown and Cronbach alpha data under each subsection below). The SAQ questions consist of close-ended, exhaustive and mutually exclusive questions to provide uniformity and are grouped into four subscales: Knowledge of Alcohol, Problems Resulting from Drinking, Quantity/Frequency Patters, and Attitudes Toward Drinking.
The Problems Resulting from Drinking subscale included 18 close-ended items such as “got a lower grade because of drinking,” and “gotten into a fight after drinking.” Validity: The equal-length Spearman-Brown statistics for this subsection yielded a reliability coefficient of .89 and the Cronbach alpha was .92. The Knowledge of Alcohol subscale includes 36 true or false items such as “"a person cannot become an alcoholic by just drinking beer," and “alcohol is not a drug.” Validity: The Spearman-Brown for this subsection gave a reliability coefficient of .85 and the Cronbach alpha was .86. The Attitudes Toward Drinking subscale includes 11 items such as “"Would you drink alcohol if there were no social pressure to do so?" Validity: The unequal-length Spearman-Brown gave a reliability coefficient of .27 for this subsection and a Cronbach alpha of .55 The SAQ also includes 6 items to assess drinking patterns. Validity: The equal-length Spearman-Brown test gave a reliability coefficient of .84 and the Cronbach alpha was .86.
Drinking levels before and after the DARE programs will measured using the Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test (AUDIT), a tool developed by the World Health Organization to screen excessive drinking. Each item in AUDIT is scored zero to four giving a total of 20 and scores of five and above are taken as an indicator of excessive drinking.
The period over which changes are to be assessed is to run from the Fall Semester 2012 to the Spring Semester 2019. The relative success of the two programs will be measured by comparing alcohol knowledge and alcohol consumption for students in Group 1 to those in Group 2.
Scoring. Analysis in this study will include pretest-posttest evaluation. Univariate comparisons for male versus female, black versus white, Hispanic versus non- Hispanic, and those that had, versus those who had not, experienced alcohol-related problems will be conducted using chi square analyses because data will be categorical. Multivariate associations will be examined by backwards stepwise logistic regression models with simple contrasts. Only records with complete data will be included in multivariate analyses to ensure that likelihood ratio tests compared nested models. All statistical procedures will be analyzed using SPSS programs and significance will be set at P < 0.05 for all tests.
Programs
Both the traditional DARE program, and the DARE-Expanded program will be integrated into the school’s health curriculum. Grades 6th-8th will meet twice a week for 45 minutes and the lesson plan will be centered round alcohol knowledge and include videos, interviews and role-play. Grades 9th-12th will also meet twice a week for 45 minutes and the lesson plan will be centered round alcohol knowledge but now will require student participation through individual research of the effects of alcohol. The aim is to promote decrease alcohol consumption via peer interaction with role-play.
Lesson plans specifically targeting the effect of underage drinking on the body and mind will be implemented once a week and are to include at least one lecture each semester by a healthcare professional, as well as participation by local law enforcement officers through a series of oral presentations, and consist of at least two presentations per semester. Students will also participate in a series of field trips to alcohol rehabilitation centers, once per semester.
Procedure
All students within the NYCSD are required to enroll in a health class from 6th-12th grade. Four of those classes will include a traditional DARE program in their curricula, another four will include an extended DARE-Expanded program, and the rest of the health classes will cover their normal curricula. Students who are entering the 6th grade during the Fall Semester of 2012 and meet the selection criteria outlined above will be invited to participate in the program. Students who secure parental permission will enter a general pool of eligibility out of which one hundred students will be randomly assigned to one of the eight health classes with a DARE program in their curricula. Participation will be mandatory, as it is for all other school curricula. However, should a student opt out of the study at the start of the first semester of the study for any reason, a new student will be enrolled in his or her place. Thereafter, attrition will be allowed to take its course. Students in Group 1 will be enrolled in a traditional DARE program for two consecutive semesters. Students in Group 2 will be enrolled in an expanded DARE-Expanded program for seven consecutive years.
All students participating in the study will undergo pretests at the beginning of the study and post-tests at the end of each school year.
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Appendix A
Parental Permission for Participation of a Child in a Research Study
New York City School District
Dear Parents:
Congratulations, your child has been randomly selected by our database as a candidate for a NYCSD study titled, “The Effectiveness of Prevention Programs on Underage Drinking and Alcohol Knowledge.” We are hereby inviting your child to participate in this research study conducted by Evelyn Smith.
Details of the research and your child’s participation
The purpose of this research is to evaluate two different DARE underage drinking prevention and alcohol knowledge enhancement programs. Your child’s participation will involve being enrolled in a special Health Education class.
The amount of time required for your child’s participation is for the duration of the school year of 2012. If your child is selected for the extended DARE program your child’s participation will be for the duration of each school year until graduation from high school.
Potential Risks
There are no known risks associated with this research. Your child will receive the instruction in the classroom. There will be at least one field trip each semester, but a separate permission form will be sent at the appropriate time.
Potential benefits
This research may help us to understand how to prevent underage drinking. The benefit to your child will consist of knowledge regarding alcohol and other substance abuse, and reduced risk of alcohol and other substance abuse.
Privacy Concerns
The privacy of your child is very important to us and we shall guard it well. We will protect the identity of your child should any publication resulting from this study.
Voluntary participation
Your child has been chosen at random and we need to include your child in the study. Nevertheless, your child’s participation in this research study is voluntary. Therefore, you may decide to opt out of the study at any time. Your child will not suffer any consequences should you decide to do so.
Contact information
You may contact me through the Principal at your school at any time should you have any questions or concerns about your child’s participation in this study. Evelyn Smith at New York University at 211.123.456.
Consent
I have read the details of the study and each detail has been carefully explained to me. I consent to my child’s participation in this study.
Parent’s or Guardian' signature_______________________________
Date:_________________
Child’s Name:_______________________________________
