Binge drinking is prevalent among adolescents and is associated with increased morbidity due to motor vehicle crashes; violence perpetration and victimization, suicide, and high risk sexual behaviors. This project aims to develop and test an innovative program for changing adolescent norms about binge drinking. The proposed innovations include: 1) intervening within adolescent social groups rather than within adolescent peer or classmate groups; 2) changing social norms by encouraging adolescent responsiveness to social pressure; 3) delivering tailored prevention curricula rather than a uniform curriculum; 4) tailoring curricula at the group level, rather than the individual level, and 5) using computer technology to facilitate group-level tailoring of the prevention curricula. In FY1 the project will develop a computer-driven program which will 1) evaluate the social norms and other risk factors for binge drinking of adolescent social groups, and 2) produce curricula that are tailored to address the risk profile of each adolescent social group using the program. The curricula will employ feedback, persuasive communication, role play, self-monitoring exercises, social contracts, and other methods of intervention to build and strengthen group norms against binge drinking. The project will also develop a protocol for teachers, counselors, or health educators to use to lead groups of adolescents through the tailored curricula. In FY2 the intervention will be tested using a 2 x 2 design, where 120 groups of 8th grade adolescents (60 social groups and 60 peer groups) will be randomly assigned to receive either a tailored curriculum or a uniform curriculum. Using change in social norms against binge drinking as the dependent measure, three hypotheses will be tested: 1) norms within social groups will change significantly more than norms within peer groups; 2) norms within groups receiving tailored curricula will change significantly more than norms within groups receiving a uniform curriculum; 3) there will be an interaction between group condition and curriculum type, such that the greatest change in norms will occur within social groups receiving tailored curricula.
