Strengthening Families Program for Parents and Youth 10-14 (SFP 10-14)

Strengthening Families 10-14 is a seven-session program for families with young adolescents that aims to enhance family protective and resiliency processes and reduce family risk related to adolescent substance abuse and other problem behaviors. The weekly, two-hour sessions include separate parent and child skills-building followed by a family session where parents and children practice the skills they have learned independently, work on conflict resolution and communication, and engage in activities to increase family cohesiveness and positive involvement of the child in the family. Parents are taught how to clarify expectations based on child development norms of adolescent substance use, using appropriate disciplinary practices, managing strong emotions regarding their children, and using effective communication. Children are taught refusal skills for dealing with peer pressure and other personal and social interactional skills. These sessions are led by three-person teams and include an average of eight families per session.