Facilitating youth self-change through school-based intervention

Early interventions for youth with high rates of alcohol use have often suffered from lack of willing participation due to negative stereotypes about treatment and the impression that alcohol interventions are not developmentally relevant for adolescents. This study evaluated the effectiveness of a school-based voluntary secondary intervention for alcohol use (Project Options). 1254 high school students (55% girls; M age = 15.9, SD = 1.2) with a history of lifetime drinking completed survey measures after the first year of Project Options in 3 schools. These results suggest that the intervention was successful in recruiting high-frequency drinkers into the intervention as well as facilitating attempts to cut down or quit alcohol use in this group of adolescents. This study provides preliminary support for a consumer-based approach to alcohol intervention and design and use of voluntary secondary interventions in a school-based population.