As the nation’s drug crisis has deepened, public and private agencies have invested huge sums of money in prevention efforts. Are the resulting programs effective? What do we need to know to make them more effective? This book provides a comprehensive overview on what we know about drug abuse prevention and its effectiveness, including, results of a wide range of antidrug efforts; the role and effectiveness of mass media in preventing drug use; a profile of the drug problem, including a look at drug use by different population groups; a review of three major schools of prevention theory - risk factor reduction, developmental change, and social influence; and an examination of promising prevention techniques from other areas of health and human services. This volume offers provocative findings on the connection between low self-esteem and drug use, the role of schools, the reality of changing drug use in the population, and more. Preventing Drug Abuse will be indispensable to anyone involved in the search for solutions, including policymakers, antidrug program developers and administrators, and researchers.