ASSESS (AWARENESS, SKILLS, SELF-EFFICACY/SELF-ESTEEM, AND SOCIAL SUPPORT)

Guide to Effective Programs
for Children and Youth

ASSESS (AWARENESS, SKILLS, SELF-EFFICACY/SELF-ESTEEM, AND SOCIAL SUPPORT)

OVERVIEW

ASSESS is a risk assessment and safe-sex education program designed to reduce sexual intercourse and increase condom use in teens. Physicians provided information on STDs, abstinence and condom use, and taught skills to help teens avoid risky situations. Participants had short-term increases in positive attitudes toward and use of condoms, and longer-term decreases in STD transmission.

DESCRIPTION OF PROGRAM

Target population: Teens

The ASSESS (Awareness, Skills, Self-efficacy/Self-esteem, and Social Support) program was a randomized intervention trial designed to determine if risk assessment and safe-sex education could reduce sexual intercourse and increase condom use among early adolescents (Boekeloo, Schamus, Simmens, Cheng, O'Connor, and D'Angelo, 1999). The program involved comprehensive STD prevention information from their physician and materials about abstinence as well as condom use. The program aimed to increase awareness of sexual risks and to teach teens skills to help them avoid risky sexual situations. It incorporated face-to-face discussions between the physician and adolescent, as well as written materials about proper condom use, self-efficacy, community resources, and effective parent-child communication.

EVALUATION(S) OF PROGRAM

Evaluated population: Teens ages 12-15 who visited a primary care physician’s office for a general health exam.

Teens were asked to participate in the study and, if they agreed, were randomly assigned to either the intervention or control group; the intervention was as discussed above (“Description of program”), while the control group did not receive educational tools. Statistical analyses revealed that, three months after the intervention, the ASSESS program showed a positive impact on attitudes toward and use of condoms, and on STD knowledge and outcomes. While significant impacts on condom use disappeared by 9 months after the intervention, STD outcomes were still significantly lower among teens in the treatment group. No significant decline in sexual intercourse, frequency of sexual activity, number of sexual partners was observed.

SOURCES FOR MORE INFORMATION

References:

Boekeloo, B. O., Schamus, L. A., Simmens, S. J., Cheng, T. L., O'Connor, K., & D'Angelo, L. J. (1999). A STD/HIV prevention trial among adolescents in managed care. Pediatrics, 103(1), 107-115.

Program also discussed in the following Child Trends publication(s):

Manlove, J., Terry-Humen, E., Romano Papillo, A., Franzetta, K., Williams, S., & Ryan, S. (2002). Preventing teenage pregnancy, childbearing, and sexually transmitted diseases: What the research shows (Research brief). Washington , DC : Child Trends.

Manlove, J., Terry-Humen, E., Romano Papillo, A., Franzetta, K., Williams, S., & Ryan, S. (2001). Background for community-level work on positive reproductive health in adolescence: Reviewing the literature on contributing factors. Washington, DC: Child Trends.

SUMMARY & CATEGORIZATION

Program categorized in this guide according to the following:

Evaluated participant ages: 12-15 / Program age ranges in the Guide: 12-14, 15-21

Program components: Clinic/provider-based

Measured outcomes: Reproductive health

Program information last updated 12/31/01.