Brief Parent-Child Substance Use Education Intervention for Black Families in Urban Cities in New Jersey: Protocol for a Formative Study Design

Abstract

Background Substance use continues to remain a public health issue for youths in the United States. Black youths living in urban communities are at a heightened risk of poor outcomes associated with substance use and misuse due to exposure to stressors in their neighborhoods, racial discrimination, and lack of prevention education programs specifically targeting Black youths. Many Black youths, especially those who live in urban communities, do not have access to culturally tailored interventions, leaving a critical gap in prevention. Since family is a well-known protective factor against substance misuse for Black youths, it is essential to create sustainable and accessible programming that incorporates Black youths’ and their families’ voices to develop a suitable prevention program for them. Objective We aim to understand the cultural and environmental level factors that influence substance use among Black youths and develop a prevention program to increase parent-child substance use education among Black families. Methods This study will take place within urban cities in New Jersey such as Paterson and East Orange, New Jersey, which will be the main study sites. Both cities have a large population of Black youths and this study’s team has strong ties with youths-serving organizations there. A formative, qualitative study will be conducted first. Using the first 3 steps of the ADAPT-ITT (Assessment, Decision, Adaptation, Production, Topical Experts, Integration, Training, and Testing) framework we begin the development of an intervention for Black families. Three aims will be described: aim 1, collect qualitative data from Black parents and youths aged 11-17 years from parent-child dyads (N=20) on the challenges, barriers, and facilitators to communicating about substance use; aim 2, adapt a selected evidence-based intervention for Black families and develop a family advisory board to guide the adaptation; and aim 3 assess the feasibility of the intervention through theater testing, involving the family and community advisory board. Results This study is part of a 2-year research pilot study award from the National Institutes of Drug Abuse. Data collection began in May 2023, and for aim 1, it is 95% complete. All aim 1 data collection is expected to be complete by December 30, 2023. Data analysis will immediately follow. Aim 2 activity will occur in spring 2024. Aim 3 activity may begin in fall 2024 and conclude in 2025. Conclusions This study will be one of the few interventions that address substance use among youths and uses parents and families in urban communities as a protective factor within the program. We anticipate that the intervention will benefit Black youths not only in New Jersey but across the nation, working on building culturally appropriate, community-specific prevention education and building on strong families’ relationships, resulting in a reduction of or delayed substance use. International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID) DERR1-10.2196/55470