Xperience Project: Prevent Party Drug Use among Urban Youth

Xperience Project: Place-based Social Marketing to Prevent Party Drug Use among Urban Youth

Between 550 and 600 youth (ages 14-20) will be recruited to participate in the Xperience intervention study. Those enrolled in the intervention and control group will report on their drug use at intake, and 3-4 months at post-test. In the project’s first year, researchers worked with focus groups of youth to develop drug-prevention messages which were then incorporated into the performances of local artists at live entertainment shows, and disseminated via a CD, print materials, a website, and promotional products. Four shows took place in Hartford over the summer of 2006 and a final CD-release show was held in the spring of 2007 with over 180 people in attendance. The Xperience Vol 1 CD was produced and over 500 copies were distributed to youth in the city. Youth who came to the shows were also given free promotional materials with drug prevention messages.  Xperience staff promoted the concept of youth-led drug-free entertainment at numerous events and locations throughout the city of Hartford where they will receive Xperience promotional items and the Vol. 1 CD with drug prevention messages. This four and a half month program will be implemented again in March of ’08. Data from the ’07-‘08 intervention cohorts will be compared to a control cohort of youth from Hartford to evaluate the efficacy of the program. A program manual will be completed in 2008 to enable other agencies around the country to host Xperience drug-free events and training programs.