The purpose of this project is to develop and evaluate an interactive multimedia product, on CD-ROM, designed to teach violence prevention skills to youth and thus prevent mental disorders and promote mental health. The program would be designed to change violence-related attitudes and strengthen conflict-related psychosocial skills. The software would make interactive use of video, audio, graphics, text, and music. There would be didactic material and exercises, packaged as games, involving application of the material. In one game, the user sees a video depiction of a conflict, chooses a behavior for the character, and then sees video portraying that choice and its likely interpersonal consequences. Research subjects would be 3,000 6th-8th grade students in an urban and a suburban school system. The experimental design would compare the product to a curriculum-based, teacher-delivered program with similar content. There would be four experimental conditions: CD-ROM, curriculum, both, and control. Subjects will be assessed at three time points (four month intervals). We will examine effects of the interventions on violence- related knowledge, attitudes and behavior, using self-report, teacher- report, school archival, and juvenile court data. The project involves a synthesis of research on youth violence and its prevention with the emerging technology of interactive multimedia.
Youth violence is a problem os serious concern to schools. Existing preventative intervention do not seem to have an optimal level of effectiveness. The proposed interactive multimedia product has the potential to make an important contribution to youth violence prevention. Also, the product would be less expensive and easier to use than traditional interventions. There is major commercial potential in the school market and in other youth-related markets as well.
