The authors suggest that the most promising route to effective strategies for the prevention of adolescent alcohol and other drug problems is through a risk-focused approach. This approach requires the identification of risk factors for drug abuse, identification of methods by which risk factors have been effectively addressed, and application of these methods to appropriate high-risk and general population samples in controlled studies. The authors review risk and protective factors for drug abuse, assess a number of approaches for drug abuse prevention potential with high-risk groups, and make recommendations for research and practice.

This article summarizes a much lengthier one that appeared in Prevention and Treatment. The earlier article grew out of a project initiated by the Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation. The Positive Youth Development Evaluation project described why policy makers, practitioners, and prevention scientists advocated a shift in approach for how youth issues are addressed in this country. The Positive Youth Development Evaluation project sought to define how youth development programs have been defined in the literature and then to locate, through a structured search, strong evaluations of these programs and summarize the outcomes of these evaluations. In the current article, we explain why prevention has shifted from a single problem focus to a focus on factors that affect both positive and problem youth development, describe what is meant by positive youth development, and summarize what we know about the effectiveness of positive youth development programs.

and Power Conclusions Future Directions REFERENCES APPENDIXES implicated in youth problem behavior; l identify and summarize the results of evaluations of positive youth development interventions; and l identify elements contributing to both the success and lack of success in positive youth development programs and program evaluations, as well as potential improvements in evaluation approaches. Defining Positive Youth DevelopmentPositive youth development is not yet well defined. This study has identified a set of recognizable features of positive youth development programs, which generally seek to achieve one or more of the following objectives:l promote bonding l foster resilience l promote social, emotional, cognitive, behavioral, and moral competence l foster self-determination l foster spirituality l foster self-efficacy l foster clear and positive identity l foster belief in the future l provide recognition for positive behavior and opportunities for prosocial involvement l foster prosocial norms (healthy standards for behavior). Selecting Programs for ReviewThe programs reviewed for this study all sought to achieve one or more of these positive youth development objectives with youths aged 6-20. Programs were not included if their activities represented treatment of, or a response to a diagnosed disorder or behavior problem. All evaluations of these programs were considered against the usual standard in the field -research designs employing control or at least strong comparison groups --and all had to measure youth behavioral outcomes.Seventy-seven positive youth development programs with evaluated interventions were selected and analyzed for their effects. Twenty-five of these programs were ultimately designated as "effective" based on the evidence presented in the evaluation. The 52 other programs were generally excluded either because the evaluation did not meet the study's scientific criteria, or, in spite of meeting the criteria, there was no evidence their program components produced an impact. Regrettably, some positive youth development programs with potential could not be fully considered in the review due to being in the early implementation stages of their study or because they lacked an evaluation component.

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