How to Communicate with young people

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How to Communicate with young people?

• Hubert Sacy
• General Manager
• Educalcool Québec

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A SuccessfulParents-Children Programme on
AlcoholHubert SacyDirector generalÉducalcool
October 2004
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Introduction

• A survey showed that 90 of Quebecers consider
  that alcohol education of the children is first
  and foremost the parents responsibility
• Éducalcool had no programme for parents
• There are others programmes elsewhere.
• Scientific evidence is available.
• Almost all programmes are on the Risk Focused
  Model.

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Our Decisions

• Ask our colleagues to send us their programmes.
  Eleven were received.
• Look for the available Research.
• Do our own Focus Groups with Quebec Parents from
  all cultures and origins.
• Draft a first Version according to our Findings
• New Focus Group to validate the approach.

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The Findings

• Parents-Children Programmes (PCP) must help
  parents deal with the risks that can contribute
  to alcohol consumption and develop factors that
  will strengthen the family affective links.
• A good programme is a programme that improves
  affective links between parents and Teenagers.
• Children who love and appreciate their parents
  are less likely to adopt risky behaviours such as
  excessive drinking.

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Support

• Offer children support by being affectionate,
  loving and caring is the main factor with regard
  to prevention.4 indicators
• Receiving encouragements- Ask parents for
  advice- Receiving caresses- Share activities.
• Deterioration of warm behaviours translates into
  increase of negative behaviours by teenagers.

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Control

• The second protective factor is an intelligent
  disciplinary, supervision and surveillance
  approach.
• Supervision even the absence of parents
• But too much surveillance translates into pervert
  effects and excessive drinking
• Support and Control are closely linked and they
  must be balanced.

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Communication

• Good communication is a key factor in every
  programme
• Parents should tell children where they stand and
  discuss with them
• An Open Dialogue is of absolute necessity
• Parents must de informed on all aspects regarding
  alcohol consumption
• Parents should insist on the need for honesty and
  ban sermons.

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Role Models

• Parents have a unique and considerable influence
  over their children.
• Parents consumption habits are the most important
  predictor of their children behaviours
• Children have a relation to alcohol and learn how
  to drink far before they start drinking.

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Our Own findings

• Parents are totally unaware of the importance of
  Discussing alcohol with their children
• They usually wait for problems to occur and
  rarely take the initiative
• They dont expect us to tell them how to educate
  their children
• Programmes must adopt an age-based approach

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Our Programme

• Follows all the Learning
• Divided in 3 parts
• How to behave
• What you should know
• What you should say

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Three Principles

• We provide parents with tools to help them handle
  alcohol-related situations
• We do not dictate ant particular position that
  parents must take
• We have one stand and a true bias Abusive
  drinking, drunkenness and intoxication are
  absolutely unacceptable.

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In a few words

• Programmes should help parents deal
  alcohol-related risks
• They must at the same time control and support
• Continuous Dialogue is essential
• Parents are a Role Model
• They need a wake-up call before they are
  offered a programme
• There is no one size-fit all.

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Our Parents-children dialogue guide

• We hired the best available pedagogical manuals
  company to draw the document
• We made 17 versions before the last one
• We got the best available visuals
• Our programme was launched end April 2004.

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Our Parents-children dialogue guide

• The guide contains three section how to be, what
  to know and what to say.
• It is divided in sections by age.
• It has been distributed to all children in
  Primary Schools Grades 5 and 6.
• It is available through a toll-free line or
  Internet
• A strong advertising campaign supported the
  launch dailies, radio and magazines.
• Orders (over 250000 in 4 months).

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Our Parents-children dialogue guide

• Some results
• Absolutely superb press coverage
• Local and International testimonies by the
  hundreds
• Awareness of the guide over 50
• Awareness of the ad campaign 73
• Éducalcool credibility rate is at its peak 80
  while it as 74 two years ago.

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