Federal Funding to Support Research of Adventure Programming and Experiential Education: The Whys an

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Federal Funding to Support Research of Adventure
Programming and Experiential Education The
Whys and How Tos

• Aleta L. Meyer, Ph.D.
• Health Scientist Administrator
• (e.g, Program Official, Cheerleader)
• Prevention Research Branch
• National Institute on Drug Abuse
• Department of Health and Human Services

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1 What is NIDA and what does it have to do
with adventure programming and experiential
education?
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National Institutes of Health(a sampling)

• National Cancer Institute (NCI)
• National Institute on Child and Human Development
  (NICHD)
• National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
• National Institute on Diabetes and Digestive and
  Kidney Disease (NIDDK)
• National Institute on Heart , Lung, and Blood
  Infections (NHLBI)
• National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA)

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The Science of Addiction Brochure

• Office of Science Policy and Communication
• Knowledge Transfer Goals
• Draws from research done by all Divisions
• Research done through
• Program Announcements (PA)
• Request for Proposals Announcements (RFA)
• Intramural Research
• Small Business Grants (SBIRs/STTRs)
• Walk Through Content ? Application to Current
  World View
• Question How and what is relevant to the work
  of adventure programming and experiential
  education?

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Exercise that pre-frontal cortex!!
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DESPR Organization and Mission
DESPR promotes epidemiology, services and
prevention research to understand and address
the range of problems related to drug abuse, in
order to improve public health.
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DESPRs Vision is to Promote --
Extraordinary Public Health Research to
Eradicate Drug Abuse
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DESPR Major Research Questions

• THEORIES
• What new theories inform our research?
• INTERACTIONS
• What intrapersonal and environmental factors
  interact across development?
• BLENDING
• How can we blend science and services to
  measurably impact public health outcomes?

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New Opportunities

• New Theories
• Economics organization/management
• Neurobehavioral disinhibition
• Measuring severity of drug addiction
• Geo-mapping drug abuse and risk factors
• Exercise and drug abuse prevention

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New Opportunities

• Interactions
• Implementation science
• Gene-environment-development studies
• Built environment and individual factors

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New Opportunities

• Science to Services
• Medical settings
• Screening (especially SBIRTs)
• Prescription drug abuse (especially opioids)
• HIV interventions among drug abusers
• Drug abuse services in criminal justice settings

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Division of Epidemiology, Services and Prevention
Research

• Promoting Extraordinary Public Health Research to
  Eradicate Drug Abuse

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2Given what you know about adventure
programming and experiential education.

• .how could Extraordinary research that makes a
  difference happen without them??
• Core Experiential Learning Theory Assertions
• The actual behavior is elicited in context with
  real-life contingencies
• Behavioral reinforcement is built-in to the
  activity
• Effective use of metaphors promotes transfer
  across contexts
• Learning styles of youth favor experiential
  strategies

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3The Time is Ripe!

• NIDA is investing in the development of a
  research portfolio that looks at potential role
  of physical activity, healthy leisure, outdoor
  adventure, and restorative recreation in the
  prevention of drug use
• SA Treatment and Physical Activity Science
  Meeting in December 2007
• PA and relapse prevention
• PA and healing of reward-pleasure circuitry
• Prevention Science Meeting June 5 6, 2008

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Can Physical Activity and Exercise Prevent Drug
Abuse?Promoting a Full Range of Science to
Inform PreventionDraft Agenda

• Welcome from NIDA
• 3 Divisions and Why Physical Activity of Interest
  
• Panel 1 Informing Drug Abuse Prevention Through
  Research on the Epidemiology and Etiology of
  Physical Activity and Substance Use
• Physical Activity from Cells to Neighborhoods
  Setting the Stage
• The Physiology/Neurobiology of Physical Activity
  in Humans
• Trends in Physical Activity, Substance Abuse, and
  the Interaction Between Them Data from
  Monitoring the Future

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Draft Agenda Contd.

• Panel 2 Show and Tell of Technological Tools to
  Help Assess Physical Activity Product
  Demonstrations
• The Pros and Cons of Physical Activity
  Assessments An Overview
• Integrated Measurement System (IMS) to Assess
  Physical Activity
• Population-Scale Physical Activity Measurement
  Using Mobile Phones
• Geospatial Analysis of Physical Activity
• Measuring the Restorative Character of
  Nature-Based Activity

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Draft Agenda Contd.

• Panel 3 The Potential Role of Physical
  Activity, Attention, and Other Cognitive
  Processes in Preventing Drug Abuse
• Exercise and Attention Disorders
• Physical Activity and Cognition Across the
  Lifespan
• Motor and Physical Instructional Strategies for
  Young Children
• Effectiveness of Social-Emotional Learning on
  Impulse Control

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Draft Agenda Contd.

• Panel 4 Physical Activity and Mood
  Implications for Prevention
• The Physiology/Neurobiology of Stress and
  Physical Activity in Animal Research
• Exercise, Depression and Nicotine Treatment
• Physical Activity and Prevention of Internalizing
  Disorders
• Panel 5 Physical Activity and Reward
  Mechanisms A Model for Prevention Intervention
  Development
• Exercise as an Alternative to Drug Seeking in
  Young Animals
• The Effect of Enhanced Environment on Drug
  Seeking and Sensation Seeking Behavior
• Experiential Approaches and Motivation

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Draft Agenda Contd.

• Panel 6 Physical Activity in Prevention
  Interventions Understanding the Context
• Health Wise and Time Wise Teaching Adolescents
  to Structure and Use Their Leisure Time
• Creating Supports for Physical Activity in School
  Settings
• School Environment and Obesity The HEALTHY
  Study to Lower Diabetes Risk in Youth
• School-Community Partnerships to Prevent
  Cardiovascular Disease and Obesity in Girls
  Through Physical Activity
• Use of Public Spaces Experiences of Diverse
  Ethnic Groups
• What Have We Learned and Next Steps?

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4Lessons Learned in Moving Prevention Beyond
Good Intentions

• Prevention Makes Sense BUT.
• How do we know it works?
• For whom, under what conditions, and when?
• Not as provocative as treatment
• Benefits not as concrete
• Not crisis driven
• How do we get people to spend scarce resources of
  time, energy, and money?

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Creation of Prevention Research Branch and
Development of Research Portfolio (1990)

• Investigator Initiated Research
• Program Announcements for Preventive
  Interventions for Substance Abuse Prevention
• R-01
• R-21
• R-03
• Specific RFAs with set-asides
• Mentorship/Training (K-series Diversity
  supplements)
• FAST TRACK for new investigators
• Small Business Grants (SBIRs/STTRs)

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Mission and Purpose of the Prevention Research
Branch

• to support a developmentally grounded program
  of research on the prevention of the initiation
  of drug use, progression to abuse and dependence,
  and transmission of drug-related HIV infection.
  (p. 4)

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Noteworthy Tidbits

• To advance the field, novel interventions must
  build on basic science findings from diverse
  fields (p. 5)
• Universal, selected, and indicated
• Underdeveloped areas
• Developmental transitions
• Differential effectiveness
• Fidelity of implementation
• Emerging technologies
• Question What does adventure programming and
  experiential education do that is relevant to
  NIDA prevention research priorities?

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5Going Beyond Best Practices and Evidence-Based
Programs

• PRINCIPLES OF PREVENTION

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Clearly Established Principles

• Arrived at from an extensive literature review of
  articles from NIDA funded research
• Reviewed by an expert scientific panel
• Reviewed by a professional practitioner panel
• Resulted in 18 principles

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Risk and Protective Factors
Principles Related to

• Prevention programs should
• enhance protective factors and reverse or reduce
  risk factors
• address all forms of drug abuse, alone or in
  combination
• Address the drug abuse problems of the local
  community by targeting modifiable risk factors
  and strengthening protective factors
• Be tailored to address the risks specific to the
  target population

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Prevention Planning
Principles Related to

• Family programs should
• Enhance family bonding, parenting skills, and
  communication
• School Programs should be specific to the
  developmental status of the children
• Before/during the elementary school years self
  control, emotional awareness, problem solving,
  communication academic readiness/competence
• Middle, junior high, and high school peer
  relations, study habits and academic support,
  communication, self-efficacy and assertiveness,
  drug resistance skills

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Prevention Planning
Principles Related to

• Community Programs
• Aimed at the general population during key
  transition points (e.g, moving to junior high)
  can be beneficial for those at all levels of risk
• That combine 2 or more effective programs (e.g.,
  school and family component) can be more
  effective than one program
• When using multiple context to implement
  programs, policies and practices consistent
  messages should be presented across settings

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Prevention Program Delivery
Principles Related to

• When communities select programs to meet their
  needs, the implementation should retain the core
  elements of the original program
• Prevention is an on-going effort with repeated
  programming over time to reinforce earlier goals
  and develop new skills
• Teacher training in classroom management is a
  critical school-based prevention strategy
• Evidence based prevention interventions are cost
  effective

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Emerging Principles

• Preventive interventions can have long term
  effects
• Preventive interventions can have cross over
  effects
• Early intervention may alter the life course
  trajectory in a positive direction
• High risk populations may benefit the most from
  prevention interventions
• Prevention interventions can influence
  physiological functioning
• Drug abuse prevention can be HIV prevention
• Environment can be a natural intervention

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Preventive Interventions Can Have Long Term
Effects
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Preventive Interventions Can Have Cross Over
Effects
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Early Intervention May Alter The Life Course
Trajectory In A Positive Direction
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High Risk Populations May Benefit The Most From
Prevention Interventions
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Prevention Interventions Can Influence
Physiological Functioning
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Drug Abuse Prevention Can Be HIV Prevention
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Environment Can Be A Natural Intervention
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6Expanding Our Understanding of Prevention,
Health Promotion, and Positive Youth Development

• Moving Beyond
• A focus on individuals
• A focus on programs
• Conceptual models based on early aggression
• Moving Toward
• Health Promotion Across Domains
• Positive Youth Development
• Conceptual Models Based on New Science from the
  Micro to the Macro
• Systems-Level Change

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Evidence-Based Kernels and Behavior Vaccines
(Embry, 2004)

• Evidence-based kernels are irreducible units of
  behavior-change technology, and they can be put
  together into behavioral vaccines (daily
  practices) with powerful longitudinal results.
• Breadth of reach (self-directed, dyadic, group,
  community)
• Multi-level Approach
• Level One Cultural Modeling
• Level Two Brief Tools
• Level Three Narrow Focus Tools
• Level Four Broad Focus Tools
• Level Five Intensive Tools

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Related Paradigm Shifts

• Public Health Model vs. Medical Model
• Curve Shifters
• Supply-Push vs. Demand-Pull
• Public Health Approach vs. Service Development
  Model

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If we spend so lavishly on medical care and we
care so much about health, why are we so
unhealthy? (Cohen Farley, 2005)

• A public health approach used to address
  preventable chronic diseases ? Shifting the Curve
• A focus on environmental contexts that serve as
  cues or triggers for behaviors that are risks for
  health or are health promoting
• Environments can be physical or social
• Example of heart disease
• What aspects of our environment make it easy to
  do the things that put us at risk for heart
  disease?

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Bell Curves

• Basic shape of bell curve
• High and low tails of extreme behavior
• Mean or average in the middle (at the height of
  the curve)
• Example of eating salt
• A medical approach would focus on changing ALL
  the unhealthy behaviors of people at the high end
  (in addition to medications)
• A focus on getting rid of the tail at the right
  of the curve
• A public health approach would focus on changing
  small behaviors of ALL people
• A focus on shifting the mean of the curve to the
  left
• This reduces level of risk for all
• This moves the extreme tail farther to the
  left, so even though the same number of people,
  they are at less risk
• Greater reduction of public health burden of
  heart disease when mean is shifted (than when
  efforts are focused on those at highest risk)

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Curve Shifters

• Curve shifters are changes in the physical and
  social environment that move the curve to the
  left
• More sidewalks, mass transit
• Time in schedule for taking a walk with
  family/friends
• Not surprisingly, changing the environment to
  support healthy behavior is easier said than done
• Even so, it is a powerful tool for thinking about
  how we can prevent youth violence and/or bullying

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Developing Effective Prevention Services for the
Real World (Sandler et al., 2005)

• Prevention Research Cycle
• Description of the problem
• Development of intervention
• Experimental test
• Experimental test in service setting
• Adoption and implementation
• Problems with this model (e.g., on-going services
  research)
• Has not made a dent in prevalance at population
  level
• Not being adopted / Sustainability issues

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Prevention Service Development Model

• Service Marketing Perspective considers customer
  input at all stages (both ultimate client who is
  recipient and the agency that adopts)
• Front-end planning
• Organizational mission and goals?
• Idea generation
• Concept development
• Feasibility Analysis
• New Phases Prototype Development and Testing
  Introduction to the Market Post Introduction
  Evaluation

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Small Business Approaches

• Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) / Small
  Business Technology Transfer Research (STTR)
• Goal Promote small businesses through
  innovation and technology, to spread the news
  about what works
• Small businesses create the applied
  possibilities, after Ivory Tower researchers
  create the concept
• Example Evidence-based programs
• Test on new populations and settings
• Create marketing and implementation opportunities
  for greater use/dissemination

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7What are priority areas of hypothesis-testing
for adventure programming and experiential
education?

• Specific Areas of Research Interest (pp. 6-9)
• Question What would the little line items be
  for adventure programming and experiential
  education look like?
• WRITE THESE DOWN AND GET A COPY TO ME

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Food for Thought

• Testing Experiential Learning Approaches
• Comparison of EBPs with and without EE
• Additive Effects ? Use of metaphors/language from
  school-based prevention curriculum to field trips
• Diffuse Binge Drinking with Rites of Passage
• Teach parents how to facilitate natural high
  experiences to promote competence and transfer
  across settings (and over time)
• E Sharps research on leisure guidance from
  parents

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• Event-Affect Links
• Social-Emotional-Information Processing
• Relational Frame Theory / Contextual Psychology
• Move from belief we need to change beliefs or
  thoughts before behavior will change
• Focus on function over form
• Have you feet follow values, not thoughts
• Positive Risk-Taking
• Learning Orientation Toward Goals
• Possible Selves / Willingness to Fail
• Mindfulness

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REPEAT MESSAGEGet Ready? The Time is Ripe!!

• Final Question How many people have said
  something like this?
• Opportunity favors the prepared
• Who were they and what did they say?

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Contact information

• meyera2_at_nida.nih.gov
• 301-402-1725
• Active Living Research Meeting April 9-11, 2008,
  Washington DC
• Society for Prevention Research Meeting May
  28-30, San Francisco CA