Positive Approaches to Preventing Substance Use and Misuse Among Boys and Young Men of Color: Programs and Strategies At-a-Glance

This practice-support tool provides summaries of interventions that help young people develop abilities and attitudes necessary to succeed and thrive.

• Most prevention programs designed to bolster positive outcomes for youth of color aim for individual behavior change and target universal populations. However, only two programs were designed for or evaluated specifically boys and young men of color: Joven Noble and Sport Hartford Boys. Tweet
• The majority of programs were designed for or evaluated with youth of colors (boys and girls). Five were designed for or evaluated with all youth, but demonstrate outcomes for youth of color. Tweet
• If you look at the setting where these programs take place, the majority occur at school, either during or after school, which makes sense due to the amount of hours youth spend in that setting. Tweet
• Social-emotional competencies were the most commonly identified protective factors associated with the prevention strategies included in this document. This coincides with the research suggesting that social-emotional competencies are associated with promoting well-being and preventing substance use and misuse. Tweet
• Programs that focus on strengthening individual assets are associated with reductions in behavioral problems generally and more specifically substance use as well as improved psychosocial skills, school commitment and academic efficacy. Tweet