Sunday, November 18, 2007

More NCJRS Abstracts, November 18, 2007

AMONG THE LATEST RESEARCH POSTED AT http://www.ncjrs.gov/. CHECK FOR OTHER ARTICLES OF INTEREST THERE AS WELL.

NCJ 220233
Susan L. Renes; Chris Ringwalt; Heddy Kovach Clark; Stean Hanley
Great Minds Don't Always Think Alike: The Challenges of Conducting Substance Abuse Prevention Research in Public Schools
Journal of Drug Education
Volume:37 Issue:2 Dated:2007 Pages:97 to 105

This article reviews issues related to researching substance abuse prevention programs in school settings, and assesses challenges related to recruitment, communication, research design, surveying, and ensuring program fidelity. Recruiting schools to serve as sites for the evaluation of a prevention curriculum requires much more than simply asking the school’s permission. Before a school enrolls, there must be an understanding on the part of both the research team and key school district and school personnel regarding the nature and extent of the study’s requirements, and what adjustments a school will have to make to its routines to support a successful collaboration. Schools, in particular, must fully appreciate the reality that the researcher is likely to impose a considerable burden in return for whatever programmatic services are offered to students, or financial incentives to the school. It is observed that researchers must fully understand that school systems are primarily accountable for educating students. Prevention researchers and school personnel lack a common understanding concerning the opportunities and burdens of school-based drug prevention research. When researchers and schools agree to collaborate on a study of the effectiveness of a substance abuse prevention curriculum, their partnership can look superficially beneficial for all concerned. There are, however, a variety of problems that can sour this collaboration. These problems originate from limitations and constraints pertaining to the school environment, methodological demands made by the researcher, and a lack of mutual understanding between school administrators and researchers regarding how to successfully address and resolve the challenges that will occur. This article examines the problems related to recruitment, communication, research design, survey, and fidelity that can occur when researchers and schools agree to work together. The article discusses the likely perspectives of both the researcher and the school, and gives examples of solutions that have proved acceptable to both. References

NCJ 220234
Michele Johnson Moore; Chudley Werch
Results of a Two-Year Longitudinal Study of Beverage-Specific Alcohol Use Among Adolescents
Journal of Drug Education
Volume:37 Issue:2 Dated:2007 Pages:107 to 122

This paper presents the results of a 2-year longitudinal study exploring beverage-specific alcohol consumption patterns among adolescents. Two important findings emerged regarding the adolescents studied: (1) there were differences in beverage-specific alcohol consumption patterns over time, with wine use increasing, liquor use decreasing, and the other four beverages (beer, flavored coolers, fortified wine, and malt liquor) showing no significant changes and (2) there were differences in beverage choice and drinking patterns by gender and ethnicity. Flavored coolers were the most commonly reported beverage for 30-day use, heavy drinking and chugging in the ninth grade, but as students aged liquor and beer were somewhat more likely to be reported, particularly for heavy drinking and chugging. Interestingly, these three beverage types have been reported to be more commonly advertised to adolescents than adults. The results indicate the need for testing interventions that target the beverages most popular among students at various points in high school in order to enhance the effectiveness of future prevention programs to reduce alcohol consumption among adolescents. According to a 2003 national survey, three-fourths (74.9 percent) of high school students have had one or more drinks of alcohol during their life, and almost half (44.9 percent) have had one in the past month. This study explored beverage-specific alcohol consumption patterns among a sample of 455 high school students over a 2-year period. Variables of interest included five use measures (past year use, 30-day frequency, quantity, heavy use, chugging), each measured for six beverages (beer, wine, flavored coolers, fortified wine, liquor, and malt liquor). Tables, references

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