NCJ Number
143989
Date Published
1993
Length
4 pages
Annotation
After providing an overview of family support programs, this report profiles program models for the prevention of alcohol and other drug abuse (AOD) under family support programs.
Abstract
Typical family support programs have components of life skills training, parent information classes and support groups, parent-child groups and family activities, drop-in time to provide parents with informal opportunities to spend time with staff members, information and referral services, crisis intervention/family counseling, and auxiliary support services. This report advises that family support programs can serve as an important resource to help parents become involved in AOD prevention. This can occur as parents are encouraged to be more positively involved in their children's lives and as treatment of potential problems and early detection are facilitated. Peer-group influence on preadolescents and adolescents may be lessened when parents feel empowered and capable of interacting positively with their children. Also, parental involvement in prevention programs may serve as a catalyst and reinforcement for widespread community-based efforts to promote AOD prevention. Six models for family-oriented AOD prevention are presented. Four resource organizations are profiled.