SBIR-STTR Award

This proposal seeks STTR funding for the preliminary development of a Web-based screening tool to help elementary school health and mental health service providers quickly and accurately assess students' risk and protective factor status for adolescent substance abuse. Early identification and targeting of known predictors of adolescent substance abuse reduce its prevalence and its negative health, social, and academic consequences. The instrument will seek information from 3rd - 5th graders, and their parents and teachers. It will assess the social environment, individual characteristics, and functioning of children. Internet and computer technology will be used to increase there liability and validity of the child sell-report data, and facilitate the collection and scoring of data from children, parents, and teachers. Aims of Phase I are to: (a) create a preliminary version of the screening tool, (b)develop supplemental administrative and training materials, and (c) pre-test the child report section. Phase I tasks include developing the list of questionnaire items, computer formats, and supplemental materials. Expert consultation and cognitive testing with children will be used to evaluate the quality and feasibility of the tool. In Phase II, the preliminary instrument and administrative procedures will undergo pilot testing and large-scale psychometric testing. PROPOSED COMMERCIAL APPLICATION: The proposed screening tool has commercial applications among health and mental health practitioners working in elementary schools. Taking advantage of schools' existing investment in Internet technology, the tool will make comprehensive risk and protective factor screenings more feasible than existing options. The range of domains assessed, the child self-report component, computer scoring, and rapidly available individual and group results designed to guide intervention planning are unique and meet a market need.

Thesaurus Terms:
Internet, behavior prediction, computer assisted patient care, computer system design /evaluation, disease /disorder proneness /risk, drug abuse prevention, elementary school drug control, educational resource design /development human subject

This application seeks Phase II funding to continue the development of the Elementary School Success Profile (ESSP) Drug Abuse Prevention Sreening Tool. The long-term objective is to help school-based health and mental health professionals quickly and accurately assess students' risk and protective factor status for adolescent substance use and other harmful health behaviors. In Phase I, a computerized child form, and obscannable parent and teacher forms were developed. An administration manual, graphical Individual and Group Profiles (data summaries), and an ESSP website were also developed. In Phase II, the screening tool prototype will be further developed and tested. Specific aims are to: (a) develop audio capacity for the computerized Child Form, (b) develop Spanish-language versions of the Child and Parent Forms and consent materials, (c) collect ESSP data on 600 3rd - 5th graders, and (d) conduct psychometric tests for the full sample and race/ethnic subgroups (African American, Hispanic/Latino, White). The objective is to produce a feasible and useful tool for school-based practitioners that meets psychometric criteria for validity and reliability. The ESSP product blends computer technology and scale development expertise in a unique screening tool that collects comprehensive, valid, and reliable information to guide efforts to prevent future substance abuse in children.

Thesaurus Terms:
Internet, behavior prediction, computer assisted patient care, computer system design /evaluation, disease /disorder proneness /risk, drug abuse prevention, elementary school, psychometrics drug control, educational resource design /development clinical research, human subject