Primary Drug Prevention: Developments in Germany since the 1970s

Abstract

Primary drug prevention in Germany has been in a constant state of transition since the early 1970s. Five consecutive phases can be identified: (1) drug deterrence and repression; (2) drug education and drug information; (3) primary drug prevention through alternatives to risk-taking, and the strengthening of personal resources; (4) primary drug prevention through strengthening of personal and social resources, promotion of resistance and life skills; (5) primary drug prevention through strengthening of personal and social resources, promotion of resistance and life skills, the promotion of harm reduction and competence in risk-taking with young people who may already consume legal or illegal drugs. During the last decade, the concept of health promotion, with its integration of individual, contextual and structural prevention has served as a guide. Beginning in the mid-1990s, secondary and tertiary prevention efforts have attracted growing interest. The integrative concept of “risk-taking competence,” which introduces harm reduction approaches into primary prevention strategies, is favored in contemporary discussion and practice.