This paper presents the rationale, development and application of "Unplugged', a new school programme for the prevention of substance abuse, which is based on the comprehensive social influence approach (CSI). The programme was developed, implemented and evaluated by a cross-disciplinary group of experts in the frame of a multi-centre study…

A college's first line of defense against employees' making insinuating remarks, unwanted sexual advances, or requests for sexual favors is often about an hour of online sensitivity training. Some people, however, wonder if that line is strong enough. According to a 2006 survey of undergraduate students by the American Association of University…

Social support is associated with better health outcomes among chronically ill individuals, yet support receipt can be stressful. The study examined supporter relationship factors, among n = 156 main-supporter-HIV+support-recipient dyads, associated with recipient's depression (CES-D greater than or equal to 16). Results indicated that support…

Theater has been used as an educational tool since the Great Depression era, and it is currently considered an effective tool for health promotion and reducing risk-taking behaviors among youth. Theater projects are well suited for communicating prevention messages to youth audiences because they can depict real-life settings and characters who…

In July 2008, RAND Corporation staff conducted Correctional Program Checklist (CPC) assessments of five home-based programs (Asian Youth Center, Communities in Schools, Inter-Agency Drug Abuse Recovery Programs, Soledad Enrichment Action, and Stars Behavioral Health Group) as part of its ongoing evaluation of Juvenile Justice Crime Prevention Act…

Although alcohol is the drug that college students use most frequently and in greatest quantity, the designer drug ecstasy has generated both curiosity and concern in recent years. This Fact Sheet offers an overview of ecstasy, possible effects of its use, and implications for institutions of higher education. Although the number of students…

The Strengthening Families in Canada Family Violence Prevention Project was aimed at engaging immigrant and refugee communities in family violence prevention. The project, which received support from the Community Mobilization Program, National Crime Prevention Strategy, involved a partnership of four community health and education organizations.…

It seems natural to ask "what worked" when looking at nations achieving HIV prevalence declines. Yet this seemingly benign question is fraught with complexity and often poorly understood. This article presents a framework to comprehend the areas in which evidence is needed to assess the policy causes of HIV success. To truly explain what…

Up to 25% of adolescent girls experience an episode of major depression, at least twice the rate found with adolescent boys. In addition to reducing the suffering associated with depression, prevention efforts with this high-risk population have the potential to avert short- and long-term functional impairment, reduce the risk of associated mental…

This meta-analysis synthesized 102 effect sizes reflecting the relation between specific moods and creativity. Effect sizes overall revealed that positive moods produce more creativity than mood-neutral controls (r = 0.15), but no significant differences between negative moods and mood-neutral controls (r = -0.03) or between positive and negative…

The outcome of a sequential treatment strategy that included cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) in the prevention of major depressive disorder relapse among 46 youths is examined. Results show that youths under the antidepressant medication management plus relapse prevention CBT treatment was at lower risk for relapse than those under the…

When estimating causal effects from observational data, it is desirable to approximate a randomized experiment as closely as possible. This goal can often be achieved by choosing a subsample from the original control group that matches the treatment group on the distribution of the observed covariates. However, sometimes the original control group…

A useful and effective approach to integrating cultural sensitivity and evidence-based practice is the development and dissemination of Cognitive Behavioral Intervention for Trauma in Schools (CBITS) program. The program is focused on improving ongoing local community engagement, and since many schools have ethnically and culturally heterogeneous…

The Stop & Think Social Skills Program was implemented as a stand-alone primary prevention program using a sequential cohort design with two cohorts of kindergarten students. Cohorts were assessed at pretest and posttest using the Social Skills Rating System Teacher Questionnaire. Students in Cohort 1 showed improvement in Social Skills,…

Recently in many Canadian schools, escalated violence presents an evident threat. Rates of severe youth violence are considerably lower than sensational media coverage would have people believe, but at the same time, many young people, as well as adults, do not feel safe, respected, or constructively engaged as they should be. While schools cannot…