Name
#IRiseAbove: Social Media and Engagement Strategies for Youth Substance Misuse Prevention
Date & Time
Tuesday, April 3, 2018, 3:45 PM - 5:00 PM
Jonathan Judge Kavitha Kailasam Mae Thompson
Description
Moderator: Tom Valentino, Senior Editor, Addiction Professional and Behavioral Healthcare Executive

CE Certified By: AMA,AAFP,ADA,ACPE,ANCC,APA,CHES,NASW

In this session, Rise Above Colorado will illustrate how to use survey data and social media to disseminate a social-norming campaign that helps close the gap in teens’ perceptions of their peers’ use of substances compared to actual, self-reported teen use. The social-norming approach is based on research that behavior is influenced by perceptions of the norm, or how we believe our peers think and act. By closing this gap in perception versus reality, the campaign is designed to reduce — or eventually prevent — teen substance use.

In order to be relevant and meet teens where they are, Rise Above Colorado is actively engaged in promoting these messages through social media. Presenters will share lessons learned and best practices for promoting prevention campaigns through social media, highlighting tools for social media management and youth engagement. Additionally, following a best practice in prevention, the social-norming campaign messages are reinforced across the social ecological model by community-based partners in targeted geographies. These partners engage youth directly through specifically designed educational resources that incorporate skill-building and relationship-building opportunities to complement and reinforce the social-norming campaign. Finally, employing a Positive Youth Development framework, Rise Above Colorado prioritizes a strengths-based message, correcting the general public perception and normalizing the reality that most teens are in fact making positive, healthy choices every day. Bringing visibility to this positive norm helps to create a context in which young people are supported in their personal decision-making as they navigate their adolescent years.

UPON COMPLETION OF THIS COURSE, PARTICIPANTS WILL BE ABLE TO:
- Explain the role of social norming in youth substance misuse prevention.
- Identify the current trends in youth utilization of social media platforms.
- Apply Positive Youth Development principles to initiatives.