Teen Success Project

NCT ID: NCT03015805

Last Updated: 2025-10-21

Basic Information

• Recruitment Status: COMPLETED
• Clinical Phase: NA
• Total Enrollment: 310 participants
• Study Classification: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Start Date: 2017-10-01
• Study Completion Date: 2023-06-05

Brief Summary

The purpose of this study is to examine the effectiveness of Juvenile Probation Officers (JPOs) delivering Contingency Management (CM) to teens on their caseload who have problems with drug use. CM has already been shown to be effective at helping teens with drug problems but CM has never been delivered by JPOs. This study will test how well it works to have JPOs deliver CM during their regular meetings with teens.

Detailed Description

Alcohol and other drug (AOD) use issues among adolescents are a major public health problem resulting in significant negative outcomes and extraordinary long-term costs. The rates of AOD use issues among youth in the justice system are twice the rates among youth without justice involvement. Further, youth with AOD issues engage in more severe delinquency and continue offending as adults, and their rate of engagement in HIV/STI sexual risk behaviors is alarming. Therefore, widespread access and delivery of effective AOD interventions to juvenile offenders is of considerable importance. Unfortunately, significant challenges exist for meeting the treatment needs of justice-involved youth. Although these youth are routinely referred to community-based providers for treatment, less than 1 in 5 are able to obtain such treatment. Further, for youth and families who are able to overcome barriers and engage with service providers, it is unlikely that they will receive an intervention that is evidence-based. In light of this context, innovative strategies clearly are needed to improve access to evidence-based practices for AOD abuse among youth in the juvenile justice system. Thus, the overriding purpose of the proposed study is to increase the access to such an evidence-based practice (Contingency Management [CM]) among youth in the juvenile justice system. This study leverages and extends the investigative team's work in CM efficacy, delivery, and technology transfer in juvenile justice settings, as well as 30+ years of collaboration with juvenile justice. We posit that juvenile probation officers (JPOs) are in an ideal position to deliver an AOD evidence-based practice to youth because of their intensive involvement and frequent contact with the youth offenders under their supervision. Further, CM is ideal for JPOs to learn and implement because it is highly specified and low in complexity relative to other AOD evidence-based practices for youth. Also, JPOs regularly monitor their probationers' substance use via frequent biological screens and implement consequences based on results, making CM consistent with JPOs' work. The proposed research randomizes JPOs to 2 conditions: CM versus control (usual JPO services), and then randomizes adolescent probationers with AOD disorders across those 2 conditions. This research would provide (1) evidence for the feasibility of JPOs to deliver an AOD abuse intervention, (2) initial evidence of clinical efficacy for JPOs as service delivery providers [to address clinical public health outcomes of AOD use, criminal activity, and HIV/STI sexual risk behaviors], and (3) identify any barriers that would need to be addressed for JPOs to deliver such services. The primary motivation for this application is the clear public health need for improving and expanding delivery of AOD interventions in the juvenile justice system. The ultimate outcome would be decreased AOD use and other public health-related behaviors (i.e., criminal behaviors, HIV/STI sexual risk behaviors) among these high-risk adolescents.

Conditions

Substance Abuse

Study Design

• Allocation Method: RANDOMIZED
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Primary Study Purpose: TREATMENT
• Blinding Strategy: SINGLE

Study Groups

Contingency Management

This group will receive regular probation services but will also receive the Contingency Management program for substance abuse from their juvenile probation officer during regular meetings.

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Contingency Management

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Contingency Management (CM) utilizes behavior modification \& cognitive behavioral strategies to target adolescent alcohol or other drug (AOD) use. Protocol components are as follows: (a) The provider introduces CM to the family and engages them in the intervention; (b) The provider conducts Antecedent-Behavior-Consequence (ABC) assessments of the youth's AOD use with the youth and caregiver; (c) Based on the results of the ABC assessments, self-management planning and drug refusal skills training are implemented by the provider in collaboration with the caregiver; (d) Concurrently, a point and level system contract is filled in by the family, which provides rewards/privileges for negative drug and alcohol tests and disincentives (e.g., extra chores) for positive tests. Until continued abstinence is achieved, components "b" through "d" are repeated; (e) The provider collaborates with the family to develop plans for sustaining long-term abstinence. Typical duration of CM is 12-16 weeks.

Probation as Usual

This group will receive regular services that are usually provided by juvenile probation officers.

Group Type: ACTIVE_COMPARATOR

Probation as Usual

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Standard services that a young person would receive while under probation supervision in the state.

Interventions

Contingency Management

Contingency Management (CM) utilizes behavior modification \& cognitive behavioral strategies to target adolescent alcohol or other drug (AOD) use. Protocol components are as follows: (a) The provider introduces CM to the family and engages them in the intervention; (b) The provider conducts Antecedent-Behavior-Consequence (ABC) assessments of the youth's AOD use with the youth and caregiver; (c) Based on the results of the ABC assessments, self-management planning and drug refusal skills training are implemented by the provider in collaboration with the caregiver; (d) Concurrently, a point and level system contract is filled in by the family, which provides rewards/privileges for negative drug and alcohol tests and disincentives (e.g., extra chores) for positive tests. Until continued abstinence is achieved, components "b" through "d" are repeated; (e) The provider collaborates with the family to develop plans for sustaining long-term abstinence. Typical duration of CM is 12-16 weeks.

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Probation as Usual

Standard services that a young person would receive while under probation supervision in the state.

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

• Employed as a juvenile probation officer within one of the participating counties
• Serving clients aged 12-18 years old with a substance abuse problem

• Newly opened probation case (can have previous cases)
• 12-18 years old
• Diagnostic and Statistical Manual-5 (DSM-5) substance use disorder

Exclusion Criteria

• Not employed as a juvenile probation officer within one of the participating counties
• Not serving clients aged 12-18 years old with a substance abuse problem
• Juvenile probation officers solely assigned to a specialized caseload (e.g., sexual offense or gang unit) were excluded if they were the only one in their county with that assignment because randomization would be precluded

• Pervasive intellectual or developmental disorder
• Active psychotic disorder
• Youth actively involved in a Drug Court Program at time of study recruitment

Ages Eligible for Study

• Youth: 12 Years to 18 Years
• JPOs: Any age

• Minimum Eligible Age: 12 Years
• Maximum Eligible Age: 18 Years
• Eligible Sex: ALL
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Sponsors

George Mason University

OTHER

Sponsor Role: collaborator

Oregon Social Learning Center

OTHER

Sponsor Role: collaborator

Chestnut Health Systems

OTHER

Sponsor Role: lead

Responsible Party

Ashli Sheidow

Senior Research Scientist

Responsibility Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Locations

Cassia County Juvenile Probation

Burley, Idaho, United States

Canyon County Juvenile Probation

Caldwell, Idaho, United States

Gooding County Juvenile Probation

Gooding, Idaho, United States

Blaine County Juvenile Probation

Hailey, Idaho, United States

Jerome County Juvenile Probation

Jerome, Idaho, United States

Minidoka Juvenile Probation

Rupert, Idaho, United States

Lincoln County Juvenile Probation

Shoshone, Idaho, United States

Twin Falls County Juvenile Probation

Twin Falls, Idaho, United States

Carson City Juvenile Probation

Carson City, Nevada, United States

Washoe County Juvenile Probation

Reno, Nevada, United States

Deschutes County Juvenile Probation

Bend, Oregon, United States

Umatilla County Juvenile Probation

Pendleton, Oregon, United States

Marion County Juvenile Probation

Salem, Oregon, United States

Wasco County Juvenile Probation

The Dalles, Oregon, United States

Countries

United States

Other Identifiers

R01DA041434-01

Identifier Type: NIH

Identifier Source: org_study_id

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