Adapting Personality-Targeted Interventions for Reducing Substance Misuse and Related Outcomes in Youth in Youth Protection Services

The Personality-targeted Interventions (i.e., Preventure programme) are selective substance use prevention programme designed to target known personality risk factors for substance misuse based on the evidence from cross-sectional and longitudinal studies which connect these personality risk factors to early initiation and escalation of substance misuse in adolescents. This selected personality-targeted approach targets four personality-specific motivational pathways to substance misuse: Hopelessness, Anxiety Sensitivity, Impulsivity, and Sensation Seeking. Each intervention will involve two 90-minute sessions, with an average of 6 personality-matched adolescents per group, and will be conducted using manuals that incorporate psycho-educational, motivational enhancement therapy (MET), and cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) components and include real life 'scenarios' shared by high-risk local youth with similar personality profiles.