Class Descriptions

Research-informed Practices to Prevent Substance Abuse in Racial and Ethnic Minority Adolescents

SW618

Credits:	3
Prerequisites:	None

Pathway Associations

Community Change
Global
Interpersonal Practice	Elective (Host)
Mgmt & Leadership
Policy & Political
Program Evaluation
Older Adults
Children & Families	Elective

Course Description

Substance abuse represents a major public health concern facing American’s youth. Although all adolescents are directly or indirectly impacted by substance abuse, racial and ethnic minority youth are disproportionately impacted. Social workers play a key role in health promotion and disease prevention, including prevention, intervention and rehabilitation of substance abuse among racial and ethnic minority adolescents in urban settings. This course will draw from multiple disciplines, including social work, epidemiology, public health, psychology, policy and couple and family therapy, to introduce students to theory and knowledge on substance abuse to inform social work practice with racial and ethnic minority adolescents in urban settings. This course will be guided by models, and the theoretical frameworks which inform them, that have been shown to be efficacious or effective in prevention, intervention, and rehabilitation of substance abuse in adolescents. Therefore, students will be introduced to research-informed substance abuse practices among racial and ethnic minority urban adolescents. For the purposes of this course, substance abuse will include both licit and illicit substances. Students will be asked to demonstrate the ways in which to apply research-informed theory and knowledge in practice settings with racial and ethnic minority urban adolescents.

Objectives

● Better understand substance abuse health disparities among racial and ethnic minority adolescents
● Develop knowledge with respect to national prevention efforts, including the National Prevention Strategy, aimed at achieving health equity and narrowing and ultimately eliminating substance abuse health disparities.
● Develop knowledge about epidemiologic methodology to: (1) identify substance use and abuse patterns among racial and ethnic minority adolescents, and (2) work toward understanding antecedents and etiology of substance abuse in racial and ethnic minority adolescents.
● • Develop a comprehensive understanding of theoretical frameworks to help guide and inform the development of substance abuse prevention, intervention, and rehabilitation programs.
● • Develop knowledge with respect to efficacious and effective substance abuse prevention, intervention, and rehabilitation models for racial and ethnic minority adolescents.
● • Identify pathways and mechanisms by which change occurs with regard to substance abuse prevention, intervention, and rehabilitation models.
● • Apply theoretical and practical information about research-informed models to relevant practice situations.

Design

This course will include lecture, discussion, outside resource persons, problem solving exercises, and audiovisual materials. Students will be given an opportunity to reflect on their own biases and values regarding substance use and abuse in an effort to work toward minimizing bias when practicing with this population. Additionally, our shared goal is to establish a classroom environment that will foster the expression of different attitudes, perspectives, and exchange of information among students.

Intensive Focus on Privilege, Oppression, Diversity and Social Justice (PODS)

This course integrates PODS content and skills with a special emphasis on the identification of theories, practice and/or policies that promote social justice, illuminate injustices and are consistent with scientific and professional knowledge. Through the use of a variety of instructional methods, this course will support students developing a vision of social justice, learn to recognize and reduce mechanisms that support oppression and injustice, work toward social justice processes, apply intersectionality and intercultural frameworks and strengthen critical consciousness, self-knowledge and self-awareness to facilitate PODS learning.