DOES THE D.A.R.E. PROGRAM WORK?

NO

Donald R. Lynam:

THERE IS NO EVIDENCE TO SUPPORT IT

Drug and Alcohol Resistance Education (D.A.R.E.), a popular and widely used
anti-drug program in many of our nation's schools, has been the subject of
a number of rigorous experimental evaluation studies as well as many
not-so-rigorous ones. Scientifically sound studies have failed to find any
short-or long-term effects of D.A.R.E. on drug use.

Our recently published 10-year follow-up study is no exception. We followed
a cohort of children who were sixth-graders when the study began. Of the 31
schools they attended, 23 were randomly assigned to receive D.A.R.E. in the
sixth grade while the other eight received whatever drug education was
provided in their classes. Participants were assessed yearly through the
10th grade and recontacted when they were 20 years old. Consistent with
other scientifically sound studies, we found that D.A.R.E. had no effect on
students' drug use at any time through 10th grade. Our10-year follow-up
failed to find any "sleeper" effects (i.e., effects showing up later that
were not present earlier). At age 20, there were no differences between
those who received D.A.R.E. and those who did not in their use of
cigarettes, alcohol, marijuana or other drugs; expectancies about these
drugs; or levels of peer pressure resistance. The only difference was that
those who received D.A.R.E. reported slightly lower levels of self-esteem
at age 20.

Representatives of D.A.R.E. America have argued that we did not use "a
no-treatment" control, that we evaluated an old version of the curriculum
and that D.A.R.E. is meant to be administered in elementary, middle and
high school. These attacks are without merit.

First, our study was longitudinal and used an appropriate scientific design
(i.e., random assignment), unlike the studies sometimes cited in support of
D.A.R.E. The "non-D.A.R.E. intervention" was so minimal as to qualify as a
no-treatment control. Second, although it is true that our study evaluated
the "original" core elementary curriculum, any changes to the curriculum
have been more cosmetic than real. The basic elements remain the same
(administration by police, to all children regardless of risk, with a focus
on increasing peer pressure resistance, and an underlying zero-tolerance
message). Third, although it is possible that multiple administrations of
D.A.R.E. would be more effective, there are no scientifically strong
studies demonstrating that this is the case. Given that the original
elementary school curriculum was ineffective (even immediately after
administration of it), why should we believe that providing more of it will
prove effective?

In the end, D.A.R.E. America has resorted to these false attacks because
there are no rigorous scientific studies with which to refute our
conclusions. D.A.R.E. has received hundreds of millions of dollars for 16
years in the absence of evidence of its effectiveness. Perhaps it is time
we D.A.R.E.d to try something else.

YES

Glenn Levant:

D.A.R.E. IS HELPING TO STEM DRUG ABUSE

In the battle against illicit drugs, "we've turned the corner." These were
the words voiced this summer by Health and Human Services Secretary Donna
Shalala as she and the national drug czar, Gen. Barry McCaffrey, released
the results of the annual HHS National Household Survey on Drug Abuse.

The survey, which is one of the very few credible national measures of drug
abuse, reports a statistically significant decline of 13 percent in teen
drug abuse during 1998. Now it's time to set the record straight. D.A.R.E.,
the prevention education program that teaches children to avoid drugs
alcohol, tobacco and violence, has played a key role in the overall
national strategy that has helped enable America to reach this important
milestone.

Community efforts have also played a key role, as has the vital role of
individual parents and family members who each day, at home and at work,
make this their highest priority. The common denominator in the collective
efforts of the team--government, law enforcement, health care providers,
religious organizations and families--is education. And although there are
many worthwhile prevention programs, none has successfully touched more
young people in America than D.A.R.E.

Today, the D.A.R.E. program is taught in more than 80 percent of all U.S.
school districts, benefiting 26 million students this year alone. Clearly,
D.A.R.E. has played a pivotal role in helping reverse the direction of teen
drug use in America.

The D.A.R.E. sequential curriculum is in its ninth generation of
improvement and, more importantly, it is the only prevention program that
includes elementary, middle and high schools. Thus, students receive vital
reinforcement of the principles necessary to provide them the knowledge and
skills to avoid not only drugs--but also alcohol, tobacco and violence.

D.A.R.E. is not a government program. It is implemented at the local level
at the request of parents, school districts and law enforcement. More than
10,000 communities have D.A.R.E. in place, and each month, scores of
communities initiate or expand the D.A.R.E. program.

We realize that D.A.R.E. is not a panacea for the multifaceted epidemic of
drug abuse--there is no silver bullet. Nor do we claim that D.A.R.E. is
solely responsible for this recent significant and encouraging decline in
drug usage by our youth. D.A.R.E. is, however, a vital component of a
comprehensive solution that includes caring parents and strong community
partnerships.