Long-term effects of two childhood psychosocial interventions on adolescent delinquency, substance use, and antisocial behavior: a cluster randomized controlled trial

Abstract

Objectives: Examine the long-term effects of two childhood universal prevention programs on adolescent delinquency, substance use, and antisocial behavior. Methods: The cluster randomized controlled trial involved 56 schools and 1,675 children in Zurich, Switzerland. Two evidence-based interventions, namely the social-emotional skills program PATHS and the cognitive-behavioral parenting program Triple P were implemented during the first two years of primary school, at ages 7 and 8. Outcomes were measured at ages 13 and 15 and included youth self-reports and teacher assessments. Multilevel models were used to account for the clustered nature of the interventions. Effects were estimated with inclusion of baseline covariates. Results: Across 13 outcomes related to delinquency, substance use, and antisocial behavior at ages 13 and 15, only two non-negligible effects were found. The first was a reduced prevalence of police contacts in the PATHS condition (ES =-.225). The second was a difference in competent conflict resolution skills in the combined PATHS + Triple P condition compared to the context (ES = .259), but in the unexpected direction: Participants in the combined treatment appeared to be less competent than their control group peers. All other effects were either statistically non-significant or negligible in size (i.e., ES < |.200|). Conclusions: Even 'evidence-based' interventions may have few long-term effects on delinquency, substance use, and antisocial behavior. Our findings add to the small literature on the long-term effectiveness of early universal prevention in field settings.

A Non-bipartite Propensity Score Analysis of the Effects of Teacher–Student Relationships on Adolescent Problem and Prosocial Behavior

“…Findings on the short and long term effects of the interventions are reported in Malti et al (2011) and Averdijk et al (2016), respectively. They yielded very limited if any evidence of intervention effects.…”

Testing the exacerbation and attenuation hypotheses of the role of anxiety in the relation between ADHD and reactive/proactive aggression: A 10-year longitudinal study

“…There, however, was little evidence that they had substantive short or long-term effects (e.g. Averdijk et al, 2016;Malti et al, 2011). As such, it is not normally judged necessary to statistically control for intervention participation or restrict analyses to those not exposed to the interventions.…”

The Causal Impact of Socio-Emotional Skills Training on Educational Success

“…These behavior changes should improve educational participation, reduce disruptive and aggressive behavior in the classroom, and, 7 Both interventions were originally implemented to reduce future aggression and delinquency. The PATHS intervention shows, in contrast to Heller et al (2017), no impact on aggression and delinquency (Averdijk et al 2016). This may be due to different environments in Chicago and Zurich.…”

“…The data we analyze in the paper come from the z-proso panel study (Malti, Ribeaud, and Eisner 2011;Eisner et al 2012;Averdijk et al 2016). The study surveys students, teachers, and primary caregivers 9 to investigate the life-course of 1,675 children starting primary school in 2004 in Zurich, the largest city in Switzerland.…”