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The School: A Setting for Evidence-Based Prevention Interventions and Policies

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Prevention of Substance Use

Part of the book series: Advances in Prevention Science ((Adv. Prevention Science))

Abstract

The school is an appropriate setting for prevention strategies for a number of reasons. The most obvious is that it is the place where children spend a great proportion of their time. In addition, the school remains a major socialization institution that can reinforce societal values, norms, and acceptable behaviors. The school is also a protective environment for children. Using these characteristics of the school to support prevention suggests several approaches that can be taken. As a socialization agent, the school can provide children with the knowledge and skills to become competent citizens and can reinforce prosocial attitudes and behaviors. As a protective environment, most schools are substance free, provide supervised after-school programs, and have activities to connect parents and families to school personnel. There are three aspects of the school environment that lend themselves specifically to substance-use prevention: (1) school climate or culture, which includes norms, beliefs, and expectancies, and school bonding, by which the student is connected to the school experience and community; (2) school policy or social control; and (3) classroom curriculum, which comprises lessons that emphasize a cognitive approach to prevention.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Applied Prevention Science International, Inc., Ontario, OH, USA

    Zili Sloboda

  2. Injury Prevention Research Center, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA

    Christopher L. Ringwalt

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  1. Zili Sloboda
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  2. Christopher L. Ringwalt
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Correspondence to Zili Sloboda .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Applied Prevention Science International, Ontario, OH, USA

    Zili Sloboda

  2. AIR, Washington, DC, USA

    Hanno Petras

  3. University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL, USA

    Elizabeth Robertson

  4. Division of Epidemiology and Prevention Research, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, Rockville, MD, USA

    Ralph Hingson

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Sloboda, Z., Ringwalt, C.L. (2019). The School: A Setting for Evidence-Based Prevention Interventions and Policies. In: Sloboda, Z., Petras, H., Robertson, E., Hingson, R. (eds) Prevention of Substance Use. Advances in Prevention Science. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00627-3_9

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