Drug Prevention Programs for Juveniles

1992 Words4 Pages

There are many different programs that are established to keep individuals from initially using drugs. Many of these prevention programs target juveniles. Most people first experiment drugs in their adolescence years. Many prevention programs cover ranges of approaches and issues. These ranges and approaches include the dissemination of factual information about drugs and their consequences, the building of self-esteem, taking responsibility for making choices, and learning how to handle peer pressure. Many people believe that drug use is a cause or contributor to criminal activity. Drug prevention and treatment programs may be effective at limiting or eliminating other crime.
Drug Abuse Resistance Education (DARE), is designed to give students the skills for resisting peer pressure. Many students are pressured into experimenting with tobacco, drugs, and alcohol. Police officers are a big part of the D.A.R.E program. Students get to meet officers and they learn to understand each other in a friendly manner. The D.A.R.E programs have five major focus areas. These focus areas include: Providing accurate information about tobacco, alcohol, and drugs; Teaching students techniques to resist peer pressure; Teaching students respect for the law and law enforcers; giving students ideas for alternatives to drug use and Building the self-esteem of students. With these programs in place the surgeon general reports that positive effects have been demonstrated regarding attitudes towards the police. D.A.R.E. officers participate in helping schools when children are threatened. D.A.R.E officer’s presence in schools also helps alleviate concerns about situations such as school shootings and other threats of violence to children whil...

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...en though many specific rehabilitation programs are, omitted from the present discussions, the array of reviews and programs that are discussed show minimal impact on recidivism. Among those promising programs are cognitive-behavioral therapies and multi-dimensional interventions, both of which match offenders and treatments in intensive programming, particularly in the community. The greatest support for rehabilitation programs can be found in studies that use alternate outcome measures. There is clear evidence that rehabilitation can improve an individual’s outlook and self-esteem. Various programs have been successful at increasing the educational and vocational achievement of clients.
Many of the most recent rehabilitation efforts, such as ISP, restorative justice, and drug courts, rely on the community as either the source of or setting for interventions.

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