Drug education study

Study: Peer-based anti-drug programs more effective
High-risk teens are about 15% less likely to use drugs when they participate in peer-led substance abuse prevention programs than in a similar educator-led class, according a study by researchers at the University of Southern California. "Generally, our study emphasizes the power of peers," said Thomas Valente, a USC assistant professor of preventive medicine. "We found that social network-tailored prevention curricula can be very successful in achieving long-term behavioral changes in teenagers."
Valente, T. (2007). Peer acceleration: effects of a social network tailored substance abuse prevention program among high-risk adolescents. Addiction,102(11),1804-1815.