Reducing Alcohol & Risks Among Young Females

The aims of this study are to to characterize and address the combined risks of early alcohol use and early sexual initiation within a population of urban African American and Latina adolescent females who are at high risk for HIV, AIDS, and other STI. Past research by the investigative team has documented that nearly 10% of females in our target population have initiated sex by fall of 7th grade and more than half have done so by spring of 10thgrade. Although alcohol use is more comparable with national figures, the combination of early alcohol and early sexual initiation is troubling, yet under-addressed by existing interventions. We will develop and test an intervention that builds upon a promising strategy for influencing adolescents: parent education. Three parenting mechanisms shown to influence adolescent risk behavior are targeted: parental monitoring, household rule setting, and communication. Informed by a community advisory board and a series of focus groups, a set of three audio-cds for parents of young adolescents will be developed. Through dramatic role-model stories, these CDs will help parents address alcohol prevention and the link between early alcohol use and sexual initiation and risk taking. Families and middle school daughters will then be enrolled into a randomized pilot test of the intervention's efficacy. Parent and student surveys will be conducted at baseline and 3-month post-intervention follow up to assess whether the intervention is beneficial in terms of promoting positive parenting practices, positive attitudes toward healthy behaviors, and reducing girls' risks.