Program
Summary
The Midwestern Prevention Project
(MPP) is a comprehensive, community-based, multi-faceted
program for adolescent drug abuse prevention. The
MPP involves an extended period of programming. Although
initiated in a school setting, it goes beyond this
setting into the family and community contexts.
Program Targets:
The MPP bridges the transition from early adolescence
to middle through late adolescence. Since early adolescence
is the first risk period for gateway drug use (i.e.,
alcohol, cigarettes, and marijuana), programming is
initiated with whole populations of middle school
(sixth or seventh grade) students.
Program Content:
The MPP strives to help youth recognize the tremendous
social pressures to use drugs and provides training
skills in how to avoid drug use and drug use situations.
These skills are initially learned in the school program
and reinforced through the parent, media, and community
organization components.
The MPP disseminates its message through a system
of well-coordinated, community-wide strategies: mass
media programming, a school program and continuing
school boosters, a parent education and organization
program, community organization and training, and
local policy change regarding tobacco, alcohol, and
other drugs. These components are introduced to the
community in sequence at a rate of one per year, with
the mass media component occurring throughout all
the years. The central component for drug prevention
programming, however, is the school.
Active social learning techniques (i.e., modeling,
role playing, and discussion, with student peer leaders
assisting teachers) are used in the school program,
along with homework assignments designed to involve
family members. The parental program involves a parent-principal
committee that meets to review school drug policy,
and parent-child communications training. A consistent
message supporting a nondrug use norm is delivered
via the other three components: mass media coverage
and programming, community organization, and the local
health policy change component. All components involve
regular meetings of respective deliverers (e.g., community
leaders for organization) to review and refine programs.
Program Outcomes:
Evaluations of the MPP have demonstrated for program
youth, compared to control youth:
- reductions of up to 40 percent in daily smoking;
- similar reduction in marijuana use, and smaller
reductions in alcohol use maintained through grade
12;
- effects on daily smoking, heavy marijuana use,
and some hard drug use have been shown through early
adulthood (age 23); and
- increased parent-child communications about drug
use.
Further, these evaluations have demonstrated that
the MPP:
- facilitated development of prevention programs,
activities, and services among community leaders.
Program Costs:
$175,000 minimal cost over a three year period (includes
costs of teacher, parent, and community leader training
and curriculum materials for school-based program).
Costs are based on up to 20 teachers trained in one
group for the school program, 20 parent group members
trained in one group for the parent program (about
3-4 principals, 4 student peer leader, 12 parents),
and 1,000 participating middle school students. Costs
increase beyond this minimum approximately as follows:
$4,000 per additional group trained on the same day
or trip, $100-$125 per additional trainer manual,
and $7 per additional student workbook.
