Prevention of Drug Abuse Among Young People in Hong Kong: The P.A.T.H.S. Program

Abstract

Adolescents’ use of drug is influenced by peer influence and (lack of) school support as well as by students’ and students’ families’ characteristics. P.A.T.H.S. program helps students to develop self-determination in achieving their goals and being less subjected to peer influence and enhances emotional competence to recognize, name, and transform negative feelings into more constructive attitudes. The following chapter attempts to construct a conceptual framework of adolescent drug abuse by integrating existing theories and the positive youth development perspective; further, it reports with illustrations how each of the 20 units on drug prevention introduced in the extension phase of Project P.A.T.H.S. is inspired by the 15 PYD constructs. It is argued that primary intervention developed under this framework will fulfill four functions: (1) prevention of the use of psychotropic drugs, (2) victimization protection, (3) strengthening support system, and (4) promotion of biopsychosocial aspects of health.