best practices

Best Practices are those strategies and programs which are deemed research-based by scientists and researchers which have been shown through substantial research and evaluation to be effective at preventing and/or delaying substance abuse or delinquency. Researchers or scientists at national organizations such as National Institute on Diseases of Addiction (formerly National Institute on Drug Abuse) (NIDA), Center for Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP), Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP), and the U.S. Department of Education are those who determine best practices as defined in this website.

Also important in prevention are those strategies considered "Promising Approaches." Promising Approaches are defined as those strategies or programs that have some quantifiable data showing positive outcomes in delaying substance abuse over a period of time, but do not have enough research or replication to support generalized outcomes.

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Models

Center for Substance Abuse Prevention's Western Center for the Application of Prevention Technologies (CAPT)
Western CAPT's purpose is to assist states, jurisdictions, and community-based prevention programs in the Western Region to apply scientifically-defensible strategies in their efforts to prevent substance abuse.  The highly successful model programs featured on this Web site can be replicated at the community level - adopted in their entirety or used to guide improvements or expanded services in an existing substance abuse prevention program.

Communities That CareŽ
Communities That Care is a system developed by J. David Hawkins and Richard F. Catalano that empowers communities to use advances from prevention science to guide their prevention efforts.

BluePrints for Violence Prevention
The result of a 1996 project initiated to identify ten violence prevention programs that met a very high scientific standard of program effectiveness - programs that could provide an initial nucleus for a national violence prevention initiative. Programs are described in a series of "blueprints" which describe the theoretical rationale, the core components of the program as implemented, the evaluation designs and results, and the practical experiences programs encountered while implementing the program at multiple sites.

SAMHSA's Center for Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP) | Strategic Prevention Framework
CSAP works with states and communities to develop comprehensive prevention systems that create healthy communities in which people enjoy a quality life. This includes supportive work and school environments, drug- and crime-free neighborhoods, and positive connections with friends and family.

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