Aims: Community outreach services play an important role in infectious disease prevention and engaging drug users not currently in treatment. However, fewer than half of US substance abuse treatment units provide these services and many have little financial incentive to do so. Unit directors generally have latitude about scope of services,…

Cannabis is the most widely used illicit drug in the world. Although the risk of problematic cannabis use is relatively low, the lifetime prevalence of dependence is greater than for all other illicit drugs. As such, the population burden of problematic cannabis use warrants attention. Many health and psychosocial risks associated with cannabis…

As adolescents' alcohol abuse is more widespread almost everywhere, the aim of this study was to better understand the influence of both alcohol expectancies and parenting styles on this risky behaviour in order to allow the development of future prevention programmes, by evaluating the correlation between these variables. A total of 1500 subjects…

Aim: This pilot study investigated what alcohol prevention benefits could be achieved by a harm reduction focused school drug education intervention that addressed all drug use, both licit and illicit. Method: The study population comprised a cohort of 225 students in three intervention secondary schools and 93 students in a matched control school…

Aim: To report baseline findings and discuss their implications for the transferability of the predominantly American "Social Norms" approach to alcohol misuse prevention to a UK (Scottish) secondary school setting. Design, setting, participants and measurement: Baseline data from a 3-year control case study are reported here, and data from the…

Aims: This article presents an overview of the strategies and measures used in the context of school-based prevention in Slovenia, both on a declaratory and on a practical level. Methods: A review of the Resolution on the National Programme on Drugs in the Republic of Slovenia [ReNPPD (2004). Resolucija o nacionalnem programu na podrocju drog…

This research examined the following questions: (1) how do drug dealers acquire their inventories of prescription medications? and (2) which types of prescription medications do dealers most commonly sell? Data are drawn from a National Institute on Drug Abuse-funded research study that examined prescription drug diversion and abuse in South…

Aims: Young adults have the highest smoking rate of any age group in the United States. However, little is known about how young adults, including college students, access and pay for cigarettes--important information for guiding policies and prevention and intervention efforts. This study examined students' use of university debit cards, which…

Aim: To investigate whether or not a range of factors were associated with problematic drinking, as assessed using the Adolescent Alcohol Involvement Scale (AAIS) in a sample of 11-16-year olds in Northern Ireland. Methods: The study used a cross-sectional experimental design. Post-primary schools in the Eastern Health Board Area of Northern…

Focus groups were conducted with 15- to 16-year olds in Northern Ireland looking at reasons for alcohol consumption and reflections on specific attitudes towards alcohol and behaviours resulting from alcohol use. Participants reported greater concern with "being caught" drinking by parents than with any negative short- or long-term health impact…

The social norms approach to health promotion has become remarkably popular in the last 20 years, particularly in the American college system. It is an alternative to traditional fear-based approaches of health education, which a growing body of research demonstrates is often ineffective in reducing alcohol and drug misuse. The social norms…

Following the 2003 publication of the European Union (EU) Council Recommendations and the 2005-2008 and 2009-2012 EU Drugs Action Plans, increasing attention has been given in EU member states' drug policies to populations that are vulnerable to problem drug use (PDU). Monitoring data reported to the EMCDDA by designated agencies from 30 countries…

Aims: This study analysed the depiction of alcohol in an online government partnered social marketing campaign: Hollyoaks "The Morning After the Night Before". This was a new initiative, providing Internet-delivered episodes of a popular terrestrial drama targeted at young people. Methods: All the 12 episodes were coded for "visual representations…

Aim: To test whether the school-based Olweus prevention programme against bullying may have lasting effects on substance use, a hypothesis based on the characteristics of bullies having misconduct behaviour associated with substance use. Methods: The Olweus programme was introduced from grades 7 through 9 in four schools and monitored up to grade…

Aims: To: (1) estimate the proportion of students exposed to specific types of information regarding the positive and negative effects of ecstasy, (2) test models that quantified the relationship between exposure to these messages and subsequent ecstasy use, controlling for peer drug use and sensation-seeking. Methods: As part of the College Life…