Project D.A.R.E. outcome effectiveness revisited.

OBJECTIVES We provide an updated meta-analysis on the effectiveness of Project D.A.R.E. in preventing alcohol, tobacco, and illicit drug use among school-aged youths. METHODS We used meta-analytic techniques to create an overall effect size for D.A.R.E. outcome evaluations reported in scientific journals. RESULTS The overall weighted effect size for the included D.A.R.E. studies was extremely small (correlation coefficient = 0.011; Cohen d = 0.023; 95% confidence interval = -0.04, 0.08) and nonsignificant (z = 0.73, NS). CONCLUSIONS Our study supports previous findings indicating that D.A.R.E. is ineffective.

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