4 Troubled Teens Blog

Well-meaning advertisements designed to stop teenage drinking may backfire and make them drink more, according to a new study from Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management.

• Professor Adam Duhachek and his colleagues studied 1,200 undergraduates who saw two ads against drinking.
  
• The first one depicted a person vomiting after drinking, and the second was about how drinking can adversely affect loved ones.
  
• The participants who felt the most guilty after looking at the ads told researchers they were more likely to binge drink in the coming year.

Dr. Duhachek called the phenomenon "defensive processing," which occurs when a person reacts negatively to messages that provoke feelings of guilt or shame.

Groups such as the National Institute of Health and the Centers for Disease Control frequently develop public service announcements aimed against unprotected sex, drug use, drinking, smoking, and other risky teenage behaviors. Dr. Duhachek's study has implications for the contents of these messages.

Labels: advertisements, behavioral_issues, media

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The Idaho Meth project has begun using an aggressive and somewhat disturbing ad campaign to try and curb the drug's popularity. The project is based on the Montana Meth Project, which - in two years - has seen adult meth use decline by 70 percent.

"Idaho launched the campaign in January. It includes TV ads, radio ads and billboard spots across the state. 'This is not a pretty drug,' [Executive Director Megan Ronk] says. 'This is not something we can sugar coat.'"

The goal of the ads is to create awareness, and opportunities for parents to talk to their kids about the drugs. The state has committed to running the campaign until meth use is "no longer an issue". Read more at KXLY.com.

Labels: meth, prevention, media

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Britney Spears, Amy Winehouse, and Lindsay Lohan are celebrities that many teenagers, at one point, liked and admired. But recently interviewed high school students expressed concern about the examples these celebs are setting for them and their peers.

"[Yvonne] Santiago said stars like Britney Spears, Lindsay Lohan and Amy Winehouse, who have publicly gone in and out of rehabilitation for addiction, make it seem as if drugs and alcohol are less serious problems than they really are. 'I think it makes kids think, "OK, if I do drugs and get messed up, then I can just go to rehab like Britney, and be all better, hooray,"' she said."

Teens are worried about the way some celebrities downplay the seriousness of drug and alcohol addiction and make rehab look easy. Many adults worry, too, because teens don't see the negative consequences of addiction in the lives of celebrities.

Labels: media, influences, role_models

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The average teen hears 84 references to drugs, alcohol or tobacco every day just by listening to popular music, according to a study from the University Of Pittsburgh School Of Medicine.

Researchers went through the lyrics of the most popular songs of 2005 to find explicit references to drugs, alcohol or tobacco. About 77% of rap music had such mentions, followed by 36% in country music, and 14% of rock music. Because the average teen listens to 2.4 hours of music a day, the researchers were able to come up with the 84 references per day figure. This study appears in the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine.

Worried about the negative influences on your teenager? Learn how to be a positive role model and other free parenting tips at ByParents-ForParents.com.

Labels: media, music, influences

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An assistant professor of nursing at Florida Atlantic University recently completed a study intended to determine how much the media really influences young girls. Josie Weiss interviewed 20 girls ages 14 to 18 who are incarcerated at VisionQuest - an intervention program for at-risk teens.

"The teens had all been sexually active, and many had unplanned and unprotected sex. While they said their parents and teachers encouraged them to make responsible sexual choices, the sexually explicit messages [in the media] were more powerful in shaping their attitudes."

Though Weiss conducted her study with teens that have criminal histories, she's certain the results would be the same among the teen population at large.

Labels: sex, media, promiscuity

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CAYA - the Coalition of Adolescents and Young Adults - is a youth program aimed at engaging young people in discussions about substance abuse, youth violence, and other issues. It's a three year program that culminates with the creation of a media project.

"Students join the program is sixth grade - the age... when students are most vulnerable and in need of guidance. They are taught information about making wise choices in various situations in life over the years and will work on the media project as the final showcase of what they learned."

This first media project - titled "Better Choices for a Better Future" - was unveiled at a red carpet event that was attended by many who are active in the community. The benefits of the program were praised and many expressed excitement over CAYA's continued work.

Want to learn more about teen drug abuse? Visit Adolescent-Substance-Abuse.com.

Labels: media, choices, responsibilty

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