Newspaper and television news stories can reduce the likelihood of teen drug abuse, according to a study from Australia. Most previous research has indicated that media encourages drinking and drug use among young people by depicting it in a positive way, especially through advertisements.
- Lead author Professor Caitlin Hughes and her colleagues analyzed 4,397 news articles, and conducted focus groups among adolescents, asking them to read newspaper reports involving substance abuse.
- The team found that news stories that featured the detrimental health and social consequences of illegal drug use could be effective into deterring young people from experimenting with them.
- However, these kinds of stories represented only 24% of the ones they analyzed. About 70% of the articles were about drug-related crime or law enforcement.
"Compared to criminal arrest portrayals, health and social harm portrayals, such as cannabis psychosis or warnings associated with drugs, produced more deterrent effect on youth," the authors wrote."
This government study was conducted at the University of South Wales National Drug and Alcohol Research Center.
Labels: teen drug abuse, prevention
Posted By: Jane St. Clair