Adolescent Family-Based Alcohol Prevention
Condition: Alcohol Abuse; Drug Abuse
MeSH terms: Alcoholism; Substance-Related Disorders
Study type: Interventional

Summary: 
      This study explores whether giving families a choice of family-based prevention programs to
      prevent adolescent alcohol use will make a difference in program recruitment, retention,
      completion, as well as adolescent outcomes. Half of the families are assigned to a
      traditional random control trial condition and half are assigned to a choice condition.
      Further, this effectiveness study is being implemented by Kaiser Permanente Health Care
      system, and explores the issues of implementing such programs within such settings.
    

Detailed description: 
      This study examines the efficacy and effectiveness of two theory based, universal family
      prevention programs that have shown efficacy for reducing adolescent alcohol and other drug
      use: Family Matters (FM) (Bauman, 1996) and (Iowa) Strengthening Families Program (Spoth,
      1999) when implemented with families randomly assigned to one of two different conditions: a
      family "choice" condition (two-groups--FM or SFP) and a traditional random control trial
      condition (three groups--FM, SFP, and control) called the "assigned" condition. The two
      conditions (choice vs. assigned) are being compared for differences in: (a) adolescent
      outcomes related to alcohol use and related behaviors; (b) family characteristics for those
      who participate; (c) family recruitment, retention and completion rates; d) costs for program
      implementation. The sample is drawn from families (N=614) with a child age 11 or 12 currently
      enrolled in Kaiser Permanente Health Care Plan (KP), in one of four medical centers in
      Northern California. An initial face-to-face interview was conducted (separately) with parent
      and adolescent prior to program delivery, and two follow-up interviews (12 and 24 months
      later) are being conducted over the telephone with parent and adolescent (separately). The
      health care system represents an important new mode for delivering adolescent alcohol use
      prevention programs to families. The specific aims of this project will provide a real world
      test of implementation issues and feasibility. Finally, the choice condition represents an
      innovative, realistic condition under which families make participation decisions outside of
      the traditional experimental study design protocols. Choosing a treatment based on personal
      preference may increase patient's sense of autonomy and self-efficacy for behavior change
      thereby improving outcomes (Williams, 1998; Clarke, 1999). Social cognitive theory and
      principles of self-regulation provide a connection between these psychological constructs and
      behavioral choices/health outcomes (Bandura, 1986; Clark & Zimmerman, 1990).
    

Intervention name(s): Strengthening Families Program (SFP); Family Matters
Intervention type(s): Behavioral; Behavioral
Intervention description(s): Prevention program with 7 weekly group sessions for parent and child.; Prevention program with 4 booklets for families to do at home with their child.
Other intervention name(s): SFP; FM
Allocation: Randomized
Intervention model: Parallel Assignment
Masking: None (Open Label)
Primary purpose: Prevention
Keywords: Adolescent alcohol and other drug use; Choice; Family-based; Prevention