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The Nebraska “Network of Drug‐Free Youth” Program
Author(s) -
NelsonSimley Kathleen,
Erickson Laurel
Publication year - 1995
Publication title -
journal of school health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.851
H-Index - 86
eISSN - 1746-1561
pISSN - 0022-4391
DOI - 10.1111/j.1746-1561.1995.tb03344.x
Subject(s) - drug prevention , tobacco use , drug education , psychology , program evaluation , medicine , family medicine , environmental health , substance abuse , gerontology , psychiatry , political science , population , public administration
This paper describes Nebraska's six‐year experience with a successful prevention program to form and maintain local drug‐free youth groups. More than 4,500 youth were involved at the time of a six‐year evaluation survey. Nearly 91% of group members who responded reported being alcohol‐free in the previous 30 days and almost all (97%) reported being tobacco‐free. Thirty‐eight percent of members met one or more of the federal criteria for “high‐risk” youth. Sixty‐eight percent of responding high‐risk youth who previously used alcohol credited group membership with helping them quit or reduce use. The program appears to assist in delaying onset of alcohol, tobacco, and other drug use for youth in the program, and to assist in decreasing or eliminating use of alcohol and tobacco by adolescents who used before participating.