Marijuana Use
Conditions
Brief summary
This study examines the impact of tailored computer-delivered and therapist-delivered brief motivations prevention/interventions both for adolescents who have not initiated marijuana use (prevention), and those who use marijuana (intervention). Key moderators of prevention/intervention effectiveness will be examined, including behavioral intentions, self-efficacy, stage of change, school involvement, susceptibility to peer pressure, and potential health consequences such as STD/HIV risk behaviors. This project will provide the critical first step toward the development and implementation of marijuana use prevention/intervention programs that have the potential to be delivered to a large segment of youth who seek care in our nation's primary care settings.
Detailed description
The primary care setting represents an underutilized venue for prevention interventions addressing drug use/abuse among youth. The purpose of the study is to: (1) develop and refine promising, empirically-derived, BMI prevention/intervention modules delivered by a clinician or a computer to target marijuana use, and (2) test the effectiveness of BMI in preventing initiation/escalation of marijuana use among youth in community health clinics. This randomized controlled trial screened adolescents in primary care clinics in Flint, MI. A random sample of those who screened negative for past year marijuana use were selected to participate in the study and all subjects who screened positive for past year use were enrolled in the study. These subjects were stratified by gender, age, and past year marijuana use and randomized to one of three conditions: 1) computer-delivered brief motivational approach (BMI-C); 2) therapist-delivered brief motivational approach (BMI-T); or 3) a NIDA drug education booklet. Primary outcomes are evaluated at 3-, 6- and 12-months and include marijuana, alcohol, tobacco and other drug use. Key moderators of effectiveness will be examined, including behavioral intentions, self-efficacy, stage of change, school involvement, susceptibility to peer pressure, and potential health consequences (e.g., STD/HIV risk behaviors). This project will provide the critical first step toward the implementation of tailored marijuana prevention and intervention in primary care clinics.
Interventions
BEHAVIORALBMI-T
Brief Motivational Intervention (BMI-T): social worker/therapist-delivered intervention (25-minute tailored structured module).
BEHAVIORALBMI-C
Computer-delivered intervention (BMI-C): computerized tailored 25-minute intervention.
Sponsors
National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)
University of Michigan
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
FACTORIAL
Primary purpose
HEALTH_SERVICES_RESEARCH
Masking
NONE
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
12 Years to 18 Years
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
* adolescents (ages 12-18) presenting to the approved health clinics (except exclusions as noted below) * ability to provide informed assent * access to a parent or guardian for parental consent
Exclusion criteria
* adolescents who do not understand English * adolescents deemed unable to provide informed consent by research staff (e.g., cognitive issues) * adolescents who come to the clinic because of sexual assault or suicide attempt, or are presenting with high psychological distress requiring intensive attention * prisoners * adolescents who are deaf * adolescents with a sibling or other household member in the study will be excluded from Phase II
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| marijuana use | 12 months | initiation of marijuana use or escalation of use |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| alcohol, tobacco, and illicit drug use | 12 months | initiation of drug use (defined as tobacco, alcohol, marijuana, or other drugs), escalation of substance use within substances (e.g., increased frequency of use), escalation of drug use to other substances (movement from tobacco to alcohol, or alcohol to marijuana, or marijuana to other harder drugs |
| risk involvement | 12 months | delinquency, peer affiliation and social context influences |
Outcome results
None listed