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d.a.r.e. faq
D.A.R.E. is a school-based anti-drug curriculum from the Los Angeles Police Department and Unified School District. D.A.R.E. was originated by ex-Chief Daryl Gates in order to place police officers in our schools. With the support of local law enforcement, D.A.R.E.
has grown into an expensive program that consumes upwards of $700 million federal, state, and local tax dollars each year.
Does D.A.R.E. keep children off of drugs? What trends are shown by nationwide surveys of adolescent drug use?
Researcher Lloyd Johnston of the University of Michigan conducts the nationwide "Monitoring the Ruture" Survey each year for drug use trends. A third of eight-graders, mostly 13-year olds, report using illegal drugs. Marijuana use more than doubled amon
g eight-graders between 1991 and 1994. Two-thirds of eight-graders have tried alcohol. A quarter say they still drink. Twenty-eight percent say they have been drunk at least once. Smoking among eight-graders rose 30% between 1991 and 1994. If D.A.R.E. is
effective on a national basis, should not these trends be in the opposite direction? Lloyd Johnston said, "I have to conclude that D.A.R.E. has had little or no effect except to give police officers something to do." [Las Vegas Sun, 5/1-2/94] An editorial
in the Worcester, Mass. Telegram lamented: "One disturbing fact: While D.A.R.E. has expanded, drug abuse and cigarette smoking among young people have increased nationwide." [Sunday Telegram, 1/28/96].
What do scientific evaluations of the D.A.R.E. program indicate? Is the research valid?
Although D.A.R.E. supporters are quick to claim "popularity ... saving only one child ... positive relations with the police ..." valid evaluations of D.A.R.E. consistently show no program effectiveness in the primary objective of "keeping kids off drugs.’ Numer
ous studies show that some D.A.R.E. students [males and suburban children] are more likely to use drugs as compared to non-D.A.R.E. students. These disturbing findings document the dreaded "boomerang effect", or an outcome exactly opposite that desired. The Res
earch Triangle Institute [RTI - Durham, NC 919-541-6000] was commissioned by the Department of Justice to evaluate D.A.R.E.. Although passing extensive peer review for validity, the RTI study was rejected by both Justice and D.A.R.E. [USA Today, 10/4/94, p2A]. T
he RTI findings were published in the American Journal of Public Health [9/94 p 1399], and showed that D.A.R.E. students used more marijuana. "D.A.R.E.’s effects were limited to essentially non-existent." - RTI researcher Dr. Susan Ennett. "An important implica
tion is that D.A.R.E. could be taking the place of other, more beneficial drug use curricula that adolescents could be receiving."
Are police officers suited to lead a program of behavioral psychology to adolescents? Should all students receive D.A.R.E.? How does the image of the officer fare if the central message of D.A.R.E. is rejected?
- The following excerpts are from "Truth and D.A.R.E.: Tracking Drug Education to Graduation and as Symbolic Politics" E. Wysong and R. Aniskiewicz [Indiana University], D. Wright [Wichita State University] Social Problems, Vol.41 No. 3, August,
1994. Pp 448-472. (with extensive references):
- "As a result of attempting to prevent all drug experimentation and/or use, Dare’s objectives are not only unrealistic but also possibly counter-productive because they are obviously unattainable ... The finding of significantly higher hallucinogen us
e among the D.A.R.E. group raises the possibility that drug education programs may increase student curiosity about drugs and lead to earlier and greater drug experimentation ... [On comparison of D.A.R.E. vs. Non-D.A.R.E. students]: there was a sharp declin
e in positive attitudes toward police, and a growing unwillingness to condemn peer’s consumption of alcohol ... Imposing D.A.R.E. upon divided studies confirm this prospect and demonstrate that when ‘socially-deviant youths are required to participate in the
school setting in peer-led denunciation of activities they value, they are more likely to become alienated than converted.’"
Is D.A.R.E. harmful to children? Are indications of trouble that a parent should be looking out for?
The slightly revised 1994 D.A.R.E. curriculum has been implemented as an untested experimental program, lead by police officers who have insufficient qualifications to teach behavioral psychology. The core of the D.A.R.E. curriculum are "refusal skills" or eight
ways to "Say No." These include techniques such as "Repeated refusal, walking away, or giving the ’cold shoulder’." Role playing with the ultimate authority figure [a police officer in uniform] instills these responses which will be used against other
legitimate authority figures. D.A.R.E.’s instructions to "Just ignore the person." May inadvertently be re-directed toward parents and teachers. Worse, empowering children to decide for themselves on whether or not to use drugs can boomerang" A D.A.R.E. studen
t may "Just say OK" when they themselves decide it is time to experiment with drugs. Parents should e aware of these trends among fight through eight-graders. Please copy and share this sheet with parents, teachers, the media, school, government and pol
ice officials.
Written by Steve Wallace
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