The need for scare-based education is not new, but it does seem to be increasing as a result of the coronavirus crisis. The past period has been stressful for many young people and there are signs that some young people have started using more drugs as a result. It is therefore understandable that many municipalities and schools want to take action on this in the period ahead. But these good intentions do not always lead to good results.
Scaring people does not work
The idea that scaring people helps is understandable in itself. Various scientific theories describe how people tend to protect themselves against dangers. This implies that if young people are aware of the dangers of drugs, they will avoid them. Unfortunately, reality is more complex and scare tactics are usually not effective. Protecting yourself against dangers only works if you know how to do so and have confidence that you can do it. These aspects are often overlooked in interventions based on ‘scare tactics’, even though these factors are essential for effective prevention.
Knowledge alone is insufficient
Education is seen as the solution to many problems, from complying with coronavirus measures to combating drug use. And this is not an unreasonable idea, because if you do not know something, you cannot act on it either. Knowledge is a necessary condition for influencing behaviour. Unfortunately, a large proportion of prevention efforts stop there. And that is a shame, because there are several steps between knowing and doing that are much more decisive, such as the perceived norms in one’s environment and the confidence that one is able to exhibit the desired behaviour. Without attention to these factors, the likelihood of behavioural change is small.
Education at a young age has no effect
Moreover, the timing of education is very important. Ideally, education should be provided before someone displays undesirable behaviour. In the case of drug prevention, this means before young people have experience using drugs. Unfortunately, some initiatives go rather too far in this regard. It is understandable that you want to intervene in time, but ‘the younger, the better’ does not apply here. Research shows that fortunately, most children do not use substances at a young age, that their attitude towards substances is mainly negative, and that education at too young an age has no effect.
Education can also have undesirable effects
Unfortunately, popular prevention strategies therefore quite often miss their mark. Moreover, a well-intentioned approach can sometimes have undesirable consequences. There are several examples of initiatives that ultimately achieved the opposite of what was intended, such as the American Scared Straight approach, in which young people were frightened with the consequences of criminal behaviour. There are also indications that educating children who are too young can have undesirable effects. When children still have a negative attitude, education can actually arouse their curiosity. So, if it does not help, can it do any harm? Sometimes it can.
Helder op School is an integrated programme that does work
This of course does not mean that schools cannot do anything to prevent students from using drugs. There are alternatives that have a protective effect without frightening students about the dangers of drugs. The Helder op School programme works with the four pillars of the Healthy School approach (policy, identifying and providing support, education and environment/parents). The programme is scientifically substantiated and has been thoroughly researched. This integrated programme focuses on creating a safe and healthy school environment. Lessons are offered that correspond to the developmental stage and level of the students, addressing not only education but also other important factors such as perceived social norms, confidence and skills. Parents are involved in delivering the lessons because they play an important role in preventing their child’s substance use. In addition, teachers and other school staff are trained to recognise problems in individual students so that action can be taken quickly. This approach aligns with the Guideline for Addiction Prevention in Education, which describes what is best done at different age stages.
Would you like to get started with substance-use prevention at school? Do not immediately think of a former addict or police officer. Helder op School offers scientifically substantiated alternatives without frightening students about the dangers of drugs.