Question: "I am looking for research that links bullying and substance use/abuse by youth. In my work as a substance abuse prevention consultant, I have been doing presentations on bullying prevention, sharing that youth who are using substances are more likely to be aggressive/violent (bullying??) And those that are bullied may turn to substances as an escape. I know I have read an article titled "Bullying Prevention is Crime Prevention" (or pretty close to that).

This all stems from my funding source which is Alcohol, Tobacco, and other Drugs grant. If i can show the "research" base that indicates that bullying is related to substance abuse prevention, the work will be allowed. Substance use/abuse as a barrier to learning is still the focus, but bullying is certainly a barrier too."

Response:

A direct link to the document "Bullying Prevention is Crime Prevention" is http://www.fightcrime.org/reports/BullyingReport.pdf

You will find several references linking bullying to substance use/abuse on the latest Hot Topic on our website and more in our Online Clearinghouse Quick Find on Bullying -- including links to HRSA's materials -- http://stopbullyingnow.hrsa.gov/index.asp and SAMHA's materials -- see http://smhp.psych.ucla.edu/qf/bully.htm

There is a new website that has sections on peer pressure and resistance to peer pressure. This may be the "bridge" you need between bullying and ATOD. Often peer pressure to take drugs takes the form of teasing or daring, in other words bullying. See the announcement and information below:

From: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH NIH News, National Institute on Alcohol, Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA)
http://www.niaaa.nih.gov/

The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), has released a new version of "The Cool Spot," the institute's website for middle school (11- to 13-year-old)children. The website can be accessed at: http://www.thecoolspot.gov

"'The Cool' Spot uses engaging games and graphics to deliver important messages about the risks of underage drinking and ways to resist peer pressure," says

"The Cool Spot's" new content is largely based on curriculum for grades 6-8 developed by NIAAA-supported researchers at the University of Michigan. The curriculum was used in a large-scale, multi-year project called the Alcohol Misuse Prevention Study (AMPS).

One goal of AMPS was to give young teens a clearer picture about alcohol use among their peers. Teens tend to overestimate how much other teens drink. But when they are provided with accurate information about peer-group drinking habits, teens may feel less pressure to drink. Other goals of AMPS were to help kids learn skills to resist pressure to drink and to give them reasons not to drink. "The Cool Spot" incorporates AMPS goals in these and other features:

• REALITY CHECK quizzes kids about how much drinking is really going on in the U.S. The answers, which often surprise kids and adults alike, are based on results of the 2002 National Survey on Drug Use and Health.

• DEEP DIGGING depicts why using alcohol as a solution to problems, or a way of trying to cope, is trouble.

• PEER PRESSURE Bag of Tricks presents animated scenes that invite kids to identify some common peer pressure "tricks." It also lets kids know that spotting these tricks is the first step to resisting them.

• KNOW YOUR NO'S, an activity that introduces kids to a variety of ways to say no, helps them learn which one is the most effective.

The site has a 10-question interactive quiz that encourages visitors to glean some of the chief learning objectives. Middle school teachers, counselors, and after-school providers can have students complete and print the quiz to show they have grasped some basic prevention messages.

NIAAA conducted additional focus testing on the site's content and usability with small groups and one-on-one interviews of 11- to 13-year olds. The site's peer pressure sections were stand-outs, according to participants. The middle schoolers reported that the site helped them clarify types of pressure they had already felt -- such as put-downs or rejection -- but had not recognized as forms of peer pressure.

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UCLA Center for Mental Health in Schools
Dept. of Psychology, P.O.Box 951563, Los Angeles, CA 90095.
tel: (310)825-3634
email: Linda Taylor ~ web: https://smhp.psych.ucla.edu