College students are an important priority population, and higher education is an opportune setting for chronic disease prevention and health promotion. Yet many people do not understand why enhancing the well-being of college students is of value. In this commentary, we address 3 common misperceptions about college health promotion: (1) College…

High-risk drinking (HRD) is a public health priority on college campuses in order to decrease harm to individuals who engage in HRD, as well as others in their presence. We posit an underexplored impact of campus HRD culture: the exposure of marginalized students to instances of bias perpetrated by those under the influence. Therefore, our focus…

The articles in this Special Topic issue present a range of assessment models and challenges for improving the identification and early intervention of students in need of additional supports. Although each article targets a unique aspect of student learning (learning behaviors, math skills, reading comprehension, behavioral functioning, and…

Much of the work in youth violence prevention has been based in a public health model and guided by a developmental-ecological perspective on risk and prevention (Bronfenbrenner, 1979, 1988). A central tenet of developmental-ecological theory is that individual development is influenced by the ongoing qualities of the social settings in which the…

The Division of Violence Prevention (DVP) at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is committed to preventing youth violence. For the past decade, DVP has supported research on risk and protective factors associated with youth interpersonal violence and the development and evaluation of prevention programs. This commentary addresses…

This article presents the results of a pilot study on the use of conspiracy beliefs by American Indian (AI) men who have sex with men and their peers to explain the origins of HIV/AIDS. We found that one-third (N = 15) of the individuals surveyed believed that HIV/AIDS was intentionally created by "Whites, White Christians, or the Federal…

As a chief spokesperson for a national movement to prevent violence and a frequent speaker in national media and public forums, Dr. Deborah Prothrow-Stith is a nationally recognized public health leader. In 1987, she was appointed the first woman Commissioner of Public Health for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. In that role, she established the…

Stresses that health psychology should (1) adopt a community or public health perspective, rather than an individual disease or individual treatment model, and (2) focus on prevention, rather than on curative services. (Author/GC)

Sees historical antecedents of primary prevention in methods of public health, counseling, and psychotherapy. Defines primary prevention as being proactive and aimed predominantly at high-risk groups not yet affected by condition to be prevented. Sees success measured in decline in incidence of condition that is compared with controls. Asserts…

The lack of adequate conceptualization of a public health strategy for alcohol abuse prevention contributes significantly to the problems of abuse in the black community. It is recommended that priority be given to the development of national policies on primary prevention services targeted for minority populations. (TJH)

Recent changes in federal policy and the proliferation of empirically based interventions (EBIs) designed to prevent problems and promote student academic and behavioral success have created an unprecedented opportunity for schools to expand their use of comprehensive strategies to meet the academic and behavioral health needs of all students. The…

Focusing on emerging models of population-level risk reduction, the authors discuss the essential ingredients for successful suicide prevention programs: comprehensiveness, fidelity, and intensity. Issues of feasibility, access, and effectiveness are discussed. The authors argue for nesting suicide prevention programs within existing public health…

Suicide, and its particularly disturbing rise in the last three decades, is a major public health concern. Prevention efforts must be multifaceted, and include the refinement of epidemiological methods in the study of suicide; development of health education, information, and intervention programs dealing with suicide; and increased community…

The importance of applied behavior analysis (ABA) in the etiology, control, and prevention of major types of morbidity and mortality is discussed in terms of the health promotion era in public health, the merging and extension of ABA and public health paradigms, and the development of effective interventions for maintaining healthy behavior.…

Discussion of the problem of violence in children and adolescents offers a public health model of prevention and intervention which views prevention activity as either primary, secondary, or tertiary, depending on the stage to which a problem has progressed. A table lists conditions that exacerbate or contribute to violent behavior in the school…