Feeder area approach: an impact evaluation of a prevention project on student drug abuse

Abstract

To determine the impact of a primary prevention project at the community level, a feeder area approach has been implemented for a period of 2 years. The operational objective of the approach has been to concentrate most of the prevention agency's programs in one small area rather than scattering its resources throughout the country at large. It has been assumed that the country as a whole is too large a unit to have a measurable impact in a short period of time. The feeder area chosen therefore is used as an experimental group while the rest of the country is viewed as a control group in a natural social setting. Through countrywide drug surveys implemented before and after the project, it has been determined that there is a significant reduction in the current users of various drugs in the selected feeder area when compared to the rest of the country.