Environmental Assessment Instrument: A New Tool for Targeting Substance AbusePrevention in Higher Education

摘要

Six years of research sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education have produceda word association tool that institutions of higher education can use to develop proactive programs to prevent substance abuse, rather than merely reacting to the problems substance abuse causes. Called the Environmental Assessment Instrument (EAI), the tool builds on nearly two dozen years of inquiry to provide information about how campus cultures or environments can be changed over the long term to promote positive academic and social outcomes. Unlike survey tools that focus on dealing with levels of alcohol and other drug (AOD) abuse, the EAI focuses upon the language people use to reflect their attitudes, perceptions, and beliefs--their internal psychological dispositions.