Researchers found that teen probationers enrolled in a drug treatment program that follows a widely used care model based on 12-step support programs and counseling were more likely to curb their drug use and have better psychological health such as fewer symptoms of depression than their peers who received other probation services such as camps, detention, or long-term placements that were not focused on treating substance abuse.

"This is the first clear evidence that the kinds of substance abuse treatments commonly available to teens can be effective," said Andrew Morral, a RAND researcher and lead author of the study, in a RAND press release. "In the program we studied, improvement began immediately and continued for at least 12 months."

The RAND study examined 175 youths ages 13 to 17 who received treatment at the Phoenix Academy of Los Angeles after being placed on probation by the court system. Phoenix Academy is a residential drug abuse treatment program for adolescents using a "therapeutic community" treatment model that emphasizes personal responsibility and mutual self-help. The Phoenix Academy in Los Angeles is operated by Phoenix House, one of the largest non-profit substance abuse treatment providers in the nation.

In the RAND study, the treated group was compared with 274 other adolescent probationers using a sophisticated statistical procedure that ensured that before treatment comparison-youths were similar to treated-youths in terms of drug use, criminal history and many other factors.

All adolescents were followed for one year, with researchers collecting periodic information about their drug use, psychological health and criminal behavior.

Drug use among both groups dropped sharply during the first three months, when most were in residential settings that inhibited such use. But those who took part in the Phoenix Academy program consistently reported less drug use, both during and after the period when most were in the residential portion of the treatment.

Adolescents in the Phoenix Academy program also received mental health benefits from treatment.

"It appears that adolescents who took part in the Phoenix Academy developed coping skills that helped them even after they left the residential part of the program," Morral said. "They continued to experience reductions in symptoms of depression, anxiety and other forms of psychological distress even after they left the structured treatment setting."

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