Estudio de viabilidad de una intervención en habilidades para la vida para la prevención del consumo de sustancias con adolescentes en contexto escolar

Abstract

Young people represent the group with the highest vulnerability to substance use and drug dependence disorders. Prevention actions are considered a priority because of the adverse consequences for their psychosocial development. The Life Skills (LS) approach addresses health education around 10 emotional, social, and cognitive competencies. These skills contribute to the development of adolescent autonomy and participation in the community, helping to improve quality of life and reduce risk behaviour. The aim of this study was to implement and evaluate the feasibility of a psychosocial intervention in Life Skills in the school environment as a strategy to prevent substance use among adolescents in Tucumán (Argentina) and Juiz de Fora (Brazil). The doctoral dissertation is composed of four chapters: firstly, a systematic literature review on LS for the prevention of psychosocial problems is presented, followed by the construction of the theoretical framework for preventive action. The theoretical foundations are based on the WHO pillars for the development of LS, in addition to the findings from the field of prevention of alcohol and other drug use; methodologically articulated with the principles of Popular Education and the Harm Reduction Paradigm in order to educate to reduce risks. The third chapter presents the results of the pilot implementation of the LS protocol in Argentina and Brazil. Finally, the methodological aspects of the study are presented. The design was mixed, with evaluation, without a control group, before and after the intervention. Seventy Argentinean and Brazilian students from public institutions participated, with an average age of 16.6 years. The strategy consisted of 5 weekly meetings, with participatory methodologies, addressing self-knowledge, control of emotions and stress, empathy, assertiveness, critical thinking and beliefs about drugs, and life project. ASSIST, Audit C and Life Skills Scale were used, as well as focus groups. Data analysis involved descriptive statistics and students' t-test to analyse mean differences before and after the intervention. The qualitative analysis adopted the criteria for evaluating the feasibility of the study, as well as suggestions for overcoming difficulties in future applications of the intervention. The results showed that the programme was accepted by the students, although the level of participation decreased throughout the process due to multiple factors. Although the LS did not present statistically significant differences in the two evaluation moments, at a qualitative level, the development of socio-emotional competencies and self-knowledge was observed, problematising drug use and other mental health problems. There are cultural differences in both samples that impacted the results achieved. It is concluded that the intervention was viable, contributing to the strengthening of healthy behaviours and support networks. However, it is necessary to extend the implementation time in order to achieve a better understanding of the skills and their transferability in everyday life, being essential to have cross-cutting actions in the school curriculum.