Abstract
Recent reviews have called for multiple component interventions to prevent complex social, health, and mental health problems (Hawkins, Catalano, & Miller, 1992; Shaffer, Phillips, & Enzer, 1989; Weissberg, Caplan, & Sivo, 1989). These reviews have highlighted the multiple pathways that exist between early risk factors and the later development of significant problems. Responding to these calls, recent prevention programs have included multiple components, each of which is targeted toward one or more of the pathways believed to underlie the development of the problem. To cite but two examples, Flay (1985) reviewed school-based social influences smoking prevention programs and concluded that the successful programs were of extended duration and were characterized by six components: media material with similar age peers, information on immediate physiological effects of smoking, correction of misperceptions about the prevalence of smoking, discussion of family and media influences on smoking and methods of dealing with them, explicit learning of behavioral skills, and a public commitment procedure. Wolchik et al. (1993) describe a program for custodial mothers of children of divorce involving five components: the custodial parent-child relationship, the noncustodial parent-child relationship, discipline strategies, reduction of stressful events, and support from nonparental adults.
Assessing the contributions of individual components in multi-component interventions poses complex challenges for prevention researchers. We review the strengths and weaknesses of designs and analyses that may be useful in answering three questions: (1) Is each of the individual components contributing to the outcome? (2) Is the program optimal? and(3), Through what processes are the components of the program achieving their effects? Factorial and fractional factorial designs in which a systematically selected portion of all possible treatment combinations is implemented are used to address question 1. Response surface designsin which each component is quantitatively scaled are explored in relation to question 2. Mediational analysis, a hybrid of experimental andcorrelational approaches, is considered in relation to question 3. Design enhancements are offered that may further strengthen some of thesetechniques. These techniques offer promise of enhancing both the basic science and applied science contributions of prevention research.
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West, S.G., Aiken, L.S., Todd, M. (2002). Probing the Effects of Individual Components in Multiple Component Prevention Programs. In: Revenson, T.A., et al. Ecological Research to Promote Social Change. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4615-0565-5_2
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