Measuring “Choice-10” Outcomes for Male and Female Adolescents

INTRODUCTION: There are gender differences in the etiology of drug abuse (Rohrbach & Milam, 2006). CHOICE-10 is a program for the prevention of risky behaviors among adolescents aged 15-16 years old. To understand gender differences in CHOICE-10 effectiveness, a study was conducted involving 554 tenth-graders (15-16 years old) from 10 schools in Chernihiv, Ukraine. A survey conducted in January 2018 among the tenth-graders prior to program enrollment indicated that 48% of girls and 52% of boys did something dangerous within the past 30 days; 33% of girls and 60% of boys participated in bullying other people; 28% of girls and 22% of boys smoked cigarettes; and 25% of girls and 23% of boys drank alcohol. Given these findings, a study was conducted to determine if there are gender differences in outcomes among participants in the CHOICE-10 prevention program.

METHODS: 554 tenth-graders voluntarily agreed to participate in the study. 275 adolescents were included in an intervention group (one class from each of ten schools) and 279 ten-graders constituted the control group (one class from each of the ten schools). Both the intervention and control groups were randomly assigned. The median age of participants was 15.5 years. An experimental design (intervention/control) was used to evaluate the effectiveness of the intervention. Engaging in risky behaviors, including bullying other people, smoking cigarettes, and drinking alcohol during the past 30 days were measured. A questionnaire containing 24 questions was used to assess program outcomes. The schedule of assessments included a baseline evaluation and one month follow up after program completion. The study was conducted in May, 2018.

RESULTS: At the follow up assessment, for those who participated in “Choce-10”, 27% of girls and 17% of boys were engaged in risky behaviors (control – 45% and 48% for girls and boys respectively); 7% of girls and 17% of boys in the intervention group bullied other people (control – 39% and 53%); 20% of girls and 17% of boys smoked cigarettes (control – 33% and 25%); 13% of girls and 17% of boys drank alcohol (control – 26% and 27%).

CONCLUSION: The findings demonstrate promising results of the intervention as well some gender differences on all four survey questions. Better results were achieved in reducing bullying and risky behavior (especially for boys). For smoking and drinking, the results were less positive. In order to examine gender differences in program outcomes more extensively, the research will be extended to other schools and regions of Ukraine.