Normative re-education: In-person norms clarification aloneb
Globally, normative re-education programs are designed to provide students with accurate information about peer alcohol use and consequences and to modify their attitudes about the acceptability of their excessive alcohol consumption to their peers and parents.
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Effectiveness: = Moderate effectiveness
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Cost: $$ = Mid-range
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Research Amount: *** = 7 to 10 studies
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Public Health Reach: Focused
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Primary Modality: In-person group
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Staffing Expertise Needed: Coordinator
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Target Population: Individuals, specific groups, or all students
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Duration of Effects: Short-term (< 6 months) effects; long-term (≥ 6 months) effects not assessed
b = Intervention changed position in the matrix
Although this approach is a component of larger, effective programs such as BASICS and ASTP, it is rated here as a stand-alone intervention.
Effectiveness ratings are based on the percentage of studies reporting any positive outcomes. Strategies with three or fewer studies did not receive an effectiveness rating due to the limited data on which to base a conclusion. Cost ratings are based on the relative program and staff costs for adoption, implementation, and maintenance of a strategy. Actual costs will vary by institution, depending on size, existing programs, and other campus and community factors. Barriers to implementing a strategy include cost and opposition, among other factors. Public health reach refers to the number of students that a strategy affects. Strategies with a broad reach affect all students or a large group of students (e.g., all underage students); strategies with a focused reach affect individuals or small groups of students (e.g., sanctioned students). Research amount/quality refers to the number of randomized controlled trials (RCT) that evaluated the strategy. Duration of effects refers to the timeframe within which the intervention demonstrated effects on alcohol-related behavioral outcomes; follow-up periods for short-term effects were <6 months; follow-up periods for long-term effects were ≥6 months.
Larimer, M.E.; and Cronce, J.M. Identification, prevention, and treatment: A review of individual-focused strategies to reduce problematic alcohol consumption by college students. Journal of Studies on Alcohol (Suppl. 14):148–63, 2002.
- Barnett, L.A.; Far, J.M.; Mauss, A.L.; and Miller, J.A. Changing perceptions of peer norms as a drinking reduction program for college students. Journal of Alcohol and Drug Education 41(2):39–62, 1996.
- Schroeder, C.M.; and Prentice, D.A. Exposing pluralistic ignorance to reduce alcohol use among college students. Journal of Applied Social Psychology 28(23):2150–80, 1998.
Larimer, M.E.; and Cronce, J.M. Identification, prevention, and treatment revisited: Individual-focused college drinking prevention strategies 1999–2006. Addictive Behaviors 32:2439–68, 2007.
- McNally, A.; and Palfai, T.P. Brief group alcohol interventions with college students: Examining motivational components. Journal of Drug Education 33(2):159−76, 2003.
- Peeler, C.M.; Far, J.; Miller, J.; and Brigham, T.A. An analysis of the effects of a program to reduce heavy drinking among college students. Journal of Alcohol and Drug Education 45(2):39−54, 2000.
- Stamper, G.A.; Smith, B.H.; Gant, R.; and Bogle, K.E. Replicated findings of an evaluation of a brief intervention designed to prevent high-risk drinking among first-year college students: Implications for social norming theory. Journal of Alcohol and Drug Education 48(2):53−72, 2004
References from 2019 update
- Prince, M.A.; Maisto, S.A.; Rice, S.L.; and Carey, K.B. Development of a face-to-face injunctive norms brief motivational intervention for college drinkers and preliminary findings. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors 29(4):825–835, 2015.
For information about intervention designs and implementation, check the articles in the References tab.
