SEMINAL STUDIES OF CONTEMPORARY RELEVANCE: OLD GOLD PART 1

Old Gold - fascinating studies from decades ago which helped set the agenda for today and have 
retained their value. Some could never be repeated because it would be unethical to deny the 
treatments they validated, others extend our horizons beyond the current limited array of 
interventions, and others reveal the inadequacy of interventions scientists might now have written 
off, but which still surface in practice.

That was why in the days when Drug and Alcohol Findings was a magazine (entire contents at 
http://findings.org.uk/issuesResults.php5) we instigated the Old Gold series in which we reanalysed 
these studies in the light of current concerns and priorities. Here and in subsequent weekly 
messages we present a selection - and try to convince you that older really can be better.

To view the entire Old Gold collection click this link:
http://findings.org.uk/issuesResults.php5?issueChoice=series+6
or click the links below to view an entry in the bulletin. If clicking does not work, paste the link 
in to your web browser address box, being sure to enter the whole address.

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FROM 1960s CALIFORNIA, THE MOST CONVINCING TEST TO DATE OF COURT-ORDERED TREATMENT
Early in the 1960s administrative blunders in California paved the way for what remains the most 
convincing test of court-ordered treatment. The mistakes created in evaluation terms the Holy 
Grail - a near perfect yet natural control group against which to compare these early 
treatment-based sentences. By showing they worked the study helped divert policy towards less 
punitive responses. Throw them in prison and then throw away the key now had a viable competitor: 
coercion with a (rehabilitative) purpose.
http://tinyurl.com/EfB-cdl/download.php?file=Ashton_M_25.pdf
For contemporary studies run this Effectiveness Bank search:
http://tinyurl.com/EfB-diversion

1970s DUTCH HEALTH EDUCATORS SHOW SCARING THE KIDS DOES NOT WORK
In the 1970s scare tactics were the dominant approach to drug education. Though today few 
specialists would think them worthy of study, such tactics regularly resurface in practice and 
retain their appeal. Hence the relevance of this study when for the first time scare tactics were 
tested in the crucible of a controlled trial. The result? Pupils administered the warnings were 
twice as likely to start using drugs (mostly cannabis) as those left to their own devices. Those 
just given *The Facts* also did worse. The only pupils whose drug use was curbed were those not 
taught about drugs at all, but given the chance to discuss the problems of adolescence with their 
teachers. Unprecedented rigour made these findings hard to dismiss, prompting a policy rethink in 
the UK and in the Netherlands.
http://tinyurl.com/EfB-cdl/download.php?file=Ashton_M_14.pdf
For contemporary studies of preventing substance use without mentioning substances see this 
Effectiveness Bank hot topic:
http://tinyurl.com/EfB-cdl/download.php?file=hot_no_drugs.hot

BRITISH STUDIES PIONEER BRIEF TREATMENT OF PROBLEM DRINKING
Three pioneering British studies from the late 1970s showed that alcohol problems could be reduced 
without intensive (and expensive) treatments. The implications were and remain immense, the 
controversy fierce. Such was their importance that over a decade later they were still the most 
cited studies of psychosocial alcohol treatments. Along with some other mainly European studies, 
they seeded the brief interventions debate and remain central to it, forming a substantial part of 
the foundation for the current policy emphasis on more widespread screening and intervention in 
primary health care settings.
http://tinyurl.com/EfB-cdl/download.php?file=Drummond_C_6.pdf
For contemporary studies see this Effectiveness Bank hot topic:
http://tinyurl.com/EfB-cdl/download.php?file=hot_alc_BI.hot

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Effectiveness Bank alerts are provided by Drug and Alcohol Findings (http://findings.org.uk) to 
alert you to site updates and recent UK-relevant evaluation studies and reviews of drug/alcohol 
interventions. Findings is managed by DrugScope, Alcohol Concern and the National Addiction Centre. 
The Effectiveness Bank is supported by Alcohol Research UK and the J Paul Getty Jr Charitable Trust.
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