Objectives: Establish metric properties of the Neighborhood Inventory for Environmental Typology (NIfETy). Method: A total of 919 residential block faces were assessed by paired raters using the NIfETy. Reliability was evaluated via interrater and internal consistency reliability; validity by comparing NIfETy data with youth self-reported…

Portal survey techniques involve multimodal assessments (e.g., self-report, biologic, and observational) in high-risk drinking and drug-use settings. Our investigation expanded the portal survey methodology to include follow-up assessments of emerging adult women recruited at the border as they cross to and from Mexico south of San Diego,…

This study identifies longitudinal psychiatric trajectories of 934 adult individuals entering chemical dependency treatment in a private, managed care health plan and examines the relationship of these trajectories with substance use (SU) outcomes. The authors apply a group-based modeling approach to identify trajectory groups based on repeated…

In recent years researchers have paid substantial attention to the issue of college students' alcohol use. One limitation to the current literature is an over reliance on retrospective, self-report survey data. This article presents field methodologies for measuring college students' alcohol consumption in natural drinking environments.…

Alcohol use is highly prevalent among U.S. college students, and alcohol-related problems are often considered the most serious public health threat on American college campuses. Although empirical examinations of college drinking have relied primarily on self-report measures, several investigators have implemented field studies to obtain…

Laws such as 0.08 blood alcohol content, open container, and license revocation provide a policy framework for reducing drinking and driving. Drinking and driving behavior is difficult to assess; unlike property and violent crimes, where incidence statistics can approximate behavior, most drink-driving trips go undetected. The authors develop a…

This study reports results from an evaluation of the experimental Rio Hondo driving under the influence (DUI) court of Los Angeles County, California. Interviews and official record checks with 284 research participants who were randomly assigned to a DUI court or a traditional criminal court were assessed at baseline and at 24-month follow-up.…

The research described here focused on personal, life context, and help-related factors to trace the long-term course of treated and untreated alcohol-use disorders. A group of 461 individuals who sought help for alcohol problems was surveyed at baseline and 1, 3, 8, and 16 years later. Compared with individuals who remained untreated, individuals…

Portal surveys, defined as assessments occurring proximal to the entry point to a high-risk locale and immediately on exit, can be used in different settings to measure characteristics and behavior of attendees at an event of interest. This methodology has been developed to assess alcohol and other drug (AOD) use at specific events and has…

Process evaluation of a residential alcohol and drug treatment program for the homeless, the New Orleans Homeless Substance Abusers Project, found that treatment effects were in a positive direction, but were rarely significant. Retention in treatment for more than a few months was associated with more positive outcomes. (SLD)

Using data from 1,162 people entering treatment and followed up (greater than 94%) for 8 years, this article examines the relationship between the duration of abstinence (1 month to 5 or more years) and other aspects of recovery (e.g., health, mental health, coping responses, legal involvement, vocational involvement, housing, peers, social and…

A beverage-server intervention project at two West Coast Navy bases that attempted to reduce levels of alcoholic intoxication via policy changes and server training is described. Data obtained via interviews and structured observations of 1,511 club customers indicate methodological bias and self-selection effects. Bias adjustments were performed…