Assessing what high risk young children know about drugs: verbal versus pictorial methods

What do preschoolers know about alcohol? Evidence from the electronic Appropriate Beverage Task (eABT)

While much is known about alcohol use in adolescence and beyond, factors leading to such behaviors are rooted much earlier in life. To investigate what preschoolers (aged three to six) know about alcohol and adult alcohol use, we developed an electronic version (eABT) of the Appropriate Beverage Task (Zucker, Kincaid, Fitzgerald, & Bingham, 1995). Drawings of adults and children in 11 everyday scenarios and 12 photos of different beverages were shown on a touchscreen computer to 301 three- to six-year-olds (49.5% girls) from 37 preschools and seven nurseries in French-speaking Switzerland. First, the children assigned a beverage to each individual in each drawing, and then were asked if the beverage contained alcohol and if they knew its name. The results revealed that 68.1% correctly classified beer, white wine, red wine and champagne as alcoholic beverages, while 46.4% knew the beverages by name, compared to 83.2% and 73.1% for non-alcoholic beverages. Alcoholic beverages were assigned more often to men (42.2%) than to women (28.7%) or to children (12.7%), and more often to adults at a party (39.4%) than to those playing outdoors (34.7%). In conclusion, children as young as three often have some beverage-specific knowledge. From the age of four onwards, they begin to know that alcoholic beverages contain alcohol. Children aged six and over tend to have some knowledge of adult drinking norms, i.e. who is drinking and in what circumstances.

The effect of early cognitions on cigarette and alcohol use during adolescence

The present study predicts cigarette and alcohol use in adolescence from the development of children's cognitions in the elementary years. Using latent growth modeling, the authors examined a model using data from 712 participants in the Oregon Youth Substance Use Project, who were in the 2nd through 5th grade at the 1st assessment and followed for 6 annual or semiannual assessments over 7 years. Growth in children's prototypes and subjective norms in the elementary years (Times 1 through 4) were related to their substance use in adolescence (Time 6) through their willingness and intentions (Time 5) to smoke and drink. Across the sample, for both substances, the intercept and slope of prototypes were either indirectly related to use through willingness or directly related to use. Both the intercept and slope of subjective norms were indirectly related to use of both substances through both willingness and intentions and directly related to cigarette use. Results suggest that elementary children have measurable cognitions regarding substance use that develop during the elementary years and predict use later in adolescence. These findings emphasize the need for prevention programs targeted at changing children's social images of substance users and encouraging more accurate perceptions of peers' use.

THE DEVELOPMENT OF SOCIAL IMAGES OF SUBSTANCE USERS IN CHILDREN: A GUTTMAN UNIDIMENSIONAL SCALING APPROACH

AIMS: The purpose of this paper was to examine the development of social images or prototypes of cigarette, alcohol and marijuana users among children in the 1(st) through 8th grade using a Guttman unidimensional scaling approach. PARTICIPANTS: Participants were 1075 1(st) through 5(th) grade children who completed annual assessments for four years. FINDINGS: The properties of a Guttman scale consisting of three sequential prototypes, (a) popular, (b) popular and exciting, and (c) popular, exciting and cool, were within acceptable limits for all three substances for 2nd through 8th graders, suggesting that these prototypes were scaleable and represented a single dimension. Prototypes became more positive after the 5th grade and varied by gender. Prototypes, moderated by age and gender, were related to intention to use substances in the future. DISCUSSION: Findings suggest that children's prototypes of substance users are unidimensional and cumulative for all three substances and that they develop sequentially. The relation of prototypes to intention among children in the 2(nd) through the 8(th) grade support the Theory of Planned Behavior and the Prototype/Willingness model, but suggest incorporating age and gender. CONCLUSIONS: Children as young as 2(nd) grade can reliably make valid judgments about attributes of kids who use substances. Results of this study have both theoretical and practical implications.

Elementary school age children's future intentions and use of substances

This study describes the lifetime prevalence and future intentions related to trying cigarettes, chewing tobacco, alcohol, marijuana, and inhalants of students in the 1st through 7th grade. This article also describes the identification of these substances by children in the 1st through 3rd grade. Participants were 1,075 1st through 5th graders within a school district in western Oregon who were followed for 3 years. Across most substances, prevalence and intentions increased with grade, with a moderate increase between 3rd and 4th grade and a larger increase between 5th and 6th grade. Boys were more likely than girls to identify alcohol and cigarettes and were more likely than girls to report trying chewing tobacco. In addition, 3rd-grade boys were more likely to identify marijuana and, in the early grades, alcohol. Boys were also more likely than girls to intend to use tobacco and drink alcohol when older. For alcohol and cigarettes, intention was related to subsequent trying of the substance, suggesting that intention may be an early warning sign of subsequent substance use.

Kindergarten children's knowledge and perceptions of alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs

Kindergarten children's knowledge and perceptions of alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs (ATODs) were assessed and the congruence between parent ATOD use and children's knowledge of ATODs was examined. Data were collected during the pre-intervention phase of an ATOD prevention trial with 5- and 6-year-old children and their parents. Three elementary schools were randomly selected from a population of 15 high-risk elementary schools in Lexington, Ky., (n = 126 parent-child dyads). Children were interviewed about their knowledge, feelings, and attitudes toward ATODs using the Child Drug Awareness Inventory. Parents self-reported ATOD use. Almost all (95%) kindergarten children recognized cigarettes; 56% correctly identified alcoholic beverages; and 17% recognized at least one illicit drug. Minority children were almost four times more likely to recognize illicit drugs than were non-minority children. Children's knowledge of ATODs was not correlated with the parents' reported drug use. ATOD prevention programs for young children merit greater emphasis.

Educating preschoolers about sun safety

OBJECTIVES

This feasibility study examined whether a sun safety curriculum designed for and administered to preschoolers affects their cognition (knowledge, comprehension, application) regarding sun safety.

METHODS

Twelve classes of 4- to 5-year-olds were recruited from local preschools and randomly assigned to an intervention group or a control group. The intervention group received an investigator-developed sun safety curriculum; the control group did not. Children in both groups were tested at the beginning of the study about their cognition related to sun safety. They then received posttests 2 and 7 weeks following the pretest.

RESULTS

The curriculum had a significant effect on the knowledge (P = .01) and comprehension (P = .006) components of cognition. The application component of cognition was not significantly changed by the curriculum.

CONCLUSIONS

A structured curriculum was found to be an efficacious means of enhancing knowledge and comprehension of sun safety in preschool children. At the preoperational developmental stage, however, children may not be able to apply such knowledge and comprehension.