Abstract
Tobacco, alcohol and cannabis use are important health problems that contribute greatly to causes of death in worldwide. Early onset of substance use increases rapidly during adolescence and it has been associated with a wide range of adverse events. Because substance use is associated with dramatic consequences, delaying the initiation of substance use among adolescents remains a major public priority. This study examined the effectiveness of a school-based intervention program based on the application of the Reasoning and Rehabilitation V2 (R&R2) program for preventing substance use among adolescents at risk of academic failure. A sample of 142 participants (aged 13–17 years old) who were studying alternative education provision in Spain were randomly allocated to two conditions (68 experimental group, 74 control group). A pre-test survey assessing past and current substance use was conducted prior the implementation of the program, while a post-test survey was conducted about 12 months after the pre-test. The results showed a significant effect of the R&R program in the reduction of cigarette smoking, episodes of drunkenness, alcohol consumption and cannabis use. However, for daily smoking and episodes of drunkenness such benefits showed a reduction over time. These findings offer additional evidence of the effectiveness of the Reasoning and Rehabilitation V2 program in Spanish adolescent students who are exposed to substance use and suggest areas of future research.
Highlights
Substance abuse is an important health problem that contributes greatly to causes of death worldwide
This was significant in the case of cigarette smoking, of which the prevalence increased from 19.4% at post-intervention to 23.5% at 12 months follow-up in Control Group (n = 74) Pool Intervention (n = 68)
This study evaluated the effectiveness of the Reasoning and Rehabilitation program V2 on the reduction of substance use in adolescent students at risk of academic failure in school programs in Alicante (Spain)
Summary
Substance abuse is an important health problem that contributes greatly to causes of death worldwide. Thirty-three percent of students admitted to having used cannabis at some occasion, while those who consumed in the last year accounted for 27.5% [3].Prevalence rates of these substances increase rapidly during adolescence and contribute to higher levels of use and abuse in adulthood [4]. Because substance use is associated with dramatic consequences, delaying the initiation of substance use among adolescents remains a major public priority. From this perspective, the World Health Organization has emphasized the need to increase efforts to prevent the early onset of substance use worldwide [6,7]
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