Bullying and mental health problems are pressing concerns for adolescents. Given their burden, we need to find efficacious ways to prevent these experiences. However, existing prevention programs tend to be single-issue and may not focus on the universal capacities required to reduce these problems among youth. To this end, we evaluated the…

Background: There is growing optimism regarding the use of screening and brief intervention (SBI) to identify and reduce risk behaviors during adolescence. However, understanding successful SBI implementation remains unclear. We previously reported the effects of CONNECT, a school-based SBI, on reducing the primary outcome, the rate of monthly…

The goal of this study was to examine behavioral norm effects in 2 peer contexts (classroom, school) on adolescent substance use (tobacco, alcohol, cannabis) and aggressive behaviors (bullying, physical fighting). Participants were 5,642 adolescents (M[subscript age] = 14.29 years, SD = 1.26; 49% boys). There were 3 hypotheses. First, behavioral…

Background: The resurgence of interest in virtual reality (VR) in recent years has been exciting for health educators and researchers, yet little is known about VR's effectiveness. This systematic literature review aims to provide an overview of the prevalence of VR in alcohol studies and assess its effectiveness. Methods: Peer-reviewed articles…

Background: Given ever-reducing budgets of community and school substance use prevention programs, there is a call for identifying the first substance in the sequence leading to polydrug use. Methods: Examining data from a nationally representative sample of 2835 United States 12th graders, we sought to determine (1) the first substance…

Aims: Developing and evaluating an email-based intervention (EBI) to enhance alcohol-related parenting skills and reduce alcohol consumption among adolescents. Methods: Over four weeks, participating parents received a weekly email containing scientific findings, practical advice and exercises in relation to such topics as alcohol-related…

Background: The Pennsylvania Youth Survey (PAYS) is administered biennially to adolescents; it covers knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors about risk and protective factors. Purpose: This study explored 8th, 10th, and 12th grade students' attitudes and beliefs about current trends regarding drugs, alcohol, and mental health. Methods: We asked…

Only 7.6% of adolescents in need of substance abuse treatment actually receive it. Many adolescents are hesitant to seek treatment due to public stigma (i.e., negative attitudes and beliefs of the general public toward individuals who abuse substances). However, decades of research indicate that interpersonal contact with stigmatized groups helps…

Perceptions of alcohol and other drug (AOD) use are associated with adolescent substance use behavior, yet research on the role of contextual factors and positive assets in this relationship is scant. This study examined the relationship between school environment and peer influence and past 30-day alcohol and marijuana use via positive future…

This study investigates whether co-occurring depressive and conduct symptoms in early adolescence are associated with an elevated occurrence of early onset substance. Five hundred twenty-one sixth graders were assessed for depressive symptoms and conduct problems and underwent five substance use assessments during middle school. Logistic…

Assets for a Healthy Adolescence - Experiential Prevention (AHA-EOSL) Program, provided by Rocky Mountain Youth Corps-CO (RMYC), engaged 165 youth during summer 2021 in Community Youth Crews (ages 14-15) or Regional Youth Crews (ages 16-18). Participants in both programs lived, camped (24/7), and worked together in 8-10 member crews for two or…

Adolescence is a very complex period. Various teen problems haunt when they grow up to become adults. The same teenagers successfully face the challenges of their development so that they are free from a variety of risky behaviors. However, some of them also smoke, consume alcohol, have free sex, commit violence, and use drugs. This research is a…

Face-to-face and cyberbullying are associated with adverse behavioral or health problems. However, little is known about the association between multiple types of bullying and substance use. The current cross-sectional study compares the association among face-to-face and cyberbullying (bully-only, victim-only, bully/victim, non-involved) and…

Prior research suggests a link between academic performance and alcohol use during adolescence, but the degree to which this association reflects actual protective effects continues to be debated. We investigated the role of genetic factors in the association between academic achievement and adolescent alcohol use and whether achievement might…

Objective: To investigate the direct effects of prenatal cocaine exposure (PCE) on adolescent drug use, while controlling for other predictors of adolescent use. Method: Data are from a longitudinal study of PCE in which women and their offspring were assessed throughout childhood. Adolescents were interviewed at 15 years about their age at…