Program Profile: Residential Student Assistance Program (RSAP)

This is a substance abuse intervention program for high-risk adolescents (ages 12–18) living in residential facilities. The program is rated Promising. Treatment group youth showed a statistically significant lower likelihood of reporting alcohol, marijuana, or overall alcohol and other drug (AOD) use in the previous 30 days, compared with comparison group youth.

A Promising rating implies that implementing the program may result in the intended outcome(s).

A Promising rating implies that implementing the program may result in the intended outcome(s).

Program Goals

The Residential Student Assistance Program (RSAP) is a substance abuse intervention program developed for high-risk adolescents living in residential facilities. The program is based on Employee Assistance Programs that are used by businesses to identify and aid employees whose work performance and lives had been adversely affected by substance abuse. It places trained professionals in residential facilities to provide youth with a full range of culturally sensitive substance abuse prevention and intervention services.

Target Population

The program targets adolescents (ages 12–18) who have been placed in residential facilities (such as foster care facilities, treatment centers for youth with psychiatric problems, and juvenile correctional facilities) and are at high risk for alcohol and other drug (AOD) use. The program targets users and youth at risk of becoming users.

Key Personnel

Trained (Master of Social Work) RSAP counselors work with adolescents individually and in small groups to help residents decrease their risk factors for substance abuse and increase their overall resiliency. RSAP counselors also conduct training for facility staff, coordinate programs and services for youth, and provide follow-up treatment and referrals.

Program Components

The RSAP model focuses on wellness and addresses factors that may hinder youth from being AOD-free. The specific program components include:

• The Prevention/Education Discussion Series. RSAP counselors conduct this eight-session substance use education program in groups of 8–10 youth. Youth discuss and role-play issues related to the consequences of substance use, family problems, and stress.
• Assessment. Residents are seen individually to determine their level of substance use, family substance abuse, and need for additional services.
• Individual and group counseling. RSAP counselors conduct a series of 8 to 12 group counseling sessions. Groups are differentiated by developmental differences, substance use patterns, and family history of substance abuse. Individual sessions are scheduled as needed for those who have chemically dependent parents and/or are using AOD.
• Referral and consultation. RSAP counselors refer residents who require assistance to treatment, more intensive counseling, or wish to participate in 12-step groups (such as Alcoholic Anonymous) outside of the facility.

Study

Morehouse and Tobler (2000) used a quasi-experimental design with a nonequivalent comparison group to evaluate the effectiveness of the Residential Student Assistance Program (RSAP) to prevent and decrease alcohol and other drug (AOD) use. The study took place in 1992–1993 and included youth placed in six residential facilities in New York, including:

1. three foster care facilities, each housing 50–100 abused, neglected, orphaned, or troubled adolescents aged 13–18, placed by social services;
2. one nonsecure facility for 200 adjudicated juveniles aged 13–16;
3. one treatment center for 65 adolescents, aged 13–18, with severe psychiatric problems; and
4. one locked county correctional facility for 200 youth, aged 16–19, who were housed in a separate unit from adult inmates.

Data was analyzed on 132 youths who had been in these facilities for 30 days or more and who voluntarily entered the program for the first time in 1992–1993.

The comparison group included “in-house” and “out-of-house” groups. The in-house comparison group (n = 168) included youth who did not participate in the RSAP that was offered at their facility. The out-of-house comparison group (n = 33) included youth residing in a facility that did not have RSAP. In the analyses, data on the in-house and out-of-house groups were combined. There were no significant differences between the intervention and comparison groups on gender, age, or race at pretest. Most youth were male and African American, with a smaller percentage of youth who were Latino, white, and other racial groups. There were also no significant differences in alcohol, marijuana, tobacco, and cocaine use in the last 30 days. Most youth reported alcohol, marijuana, and tobacco use, with only a very small percent reporting cocaine use.

Data was collected using the Monitoring the Future questionnaire. Frequency of AOD use was divided into five categories: (1) 0 times, (2) 1–2 times, (3) 3–8 times, (4) 9–29 times, and (5) daily. Two indexes were computed using data on AOD use in the last 30 days. The quantity–frequency index was based on the number of days a particular drug was used, summed across 12 drugs (alcohol, marijuana, hallucinogens, crack, cocaine, heroin, inhalants, Quaaludes, barbiturates, tranquilizers, amphetamines, and other opiates). The number-of-drugs index was based on how many of the 12 drugs were used.

Treatment group youth, regardless of the number of hours of participation in RSAP, were compared with youth who did not participate in the program. The change score on the two AOD indexes was the dependent variable for two separate sets of multiple regression analyses. No subgroup analyses were conducted.

Information about the Residential Student Assistance Program (RSAP), including implementation materials and training options, can be found at the Student Assistance Services Corporation website.

These sources were used in the development of the program profile: