RESEARCH TOPICS

RESEARCH BY TOPIC

Several intervention approaches are discussed within this body of literature. One of the more oft-mentioned methods of intervention is family therapy. Natasha Slesnick has authored numerous studies in this regard. One of the studies entitled "Variables Associated with Therapy Attendance in Runaway Substance Abusing Youth: Preliminary Findings," the author discusses the provision of ecologically-based family therapy (EBFT).¹ According to the author, EBFT is "...a multisystemic treatment based on the recognition that substance use and other related problem behaviors derive commonly from many sources of influence and occur in the context of multiple systems." The treatment includes both sessions with family and individual sessions with the youth which are focused on decision-making, emotion-regulation or other intrapersonal factors which may be influencing substance use and other problem behaviors. In a more recent study regarding EBFT, author Jillian Prestopnik heralds this type of intervention as an "effective treatment modality."²

Several studies in this area have also discussed motivational intervention as an means of working with substance-using street youth. Baer et. al, discuss this type of intervention in several articles, including, "Rationale and design of a brief substance use intervention for homeless adolescents."³ The authors provide the following critical statements about motivational interventions: "...interventions designed to help homeless youth need to acknowledge that many of these youth are not seeking services and for many, changing substance use is not a goal or takes a back seat to other more immediate concerns. Furthermore, behavior change efforts are likely to succeed if steps taken to modify behavior evolve out of motivation, commitment to change, and challenging of social norms. Thus, interventions to enhance motivation, by facilitating contemplation about change and then consolidating commitment to change behavior, are an important first step. Further, engagement appears to be a key challenge for service providers. Any service that is offered should make few demands on youth to maximize program entry." The authors conclude by stating that "[a]spects of programs that facilitate engagement include low threshold for entry and flexible service goals."

Peer education and peer-led groups have also been cited as effective interventions for substance-using homeless youths.⁴

_{¹N. Slesnick, "Variables Associated with Therapy Attendance in Runaway Substance Abusing Youth: Preliminary Findings," The American Journal of Family Therapy, Vol. 29, No. 5, pp. 411-420, October - December 2001.
²J. L. Prestopnik, "Ecologically Based Family Therapy Outcome with Substance Abusing Runaway Adolescents," Journal of Adolescence, Vol. 28, No. 2, pp. 277-298, April 2005.
³J.S. Baer, et. al, "Rationale and design of a brief substance use intervention for homeless adolescents," Addiction Research and Theory, Vol. 12(4), pp. 317-334, August 2004.
⁴See S.W. Fors and S. Jarvis, "Evaluation of a Peer-led Drug Abuse Reduction Project for Runaway/Homeless Youths," Journal of Drug Education, Vol. 25, No. 4, pp. 321-333, 1995. See also, "P. Reid and H.Klee, "Young Homeless Drug users - Ways of Coping with Harassment," Journal of Community and Applied Psychology, Vol. 10, pp. 69-75, 2000.}