CHOICE Group Motivational Interviewing (MI) for Teens
About This Program
Target Population: Youth in middle school who do not use substances or may be starting to use substances, approximately ages 11-14
For children/adolescents ages: 11 – 14
Program Overview
CHOICE Group Motivational Interviewing (MI) for Teens is a group-based prevention/intervention program that addresses substance use and ways to increase protective factors. CHOICE is for middle school teens who have not used or have just begun to use substances and consists of 5 sessions. The groups use MI as the counseling method. MI is a client-centered, directive communication method designed to enhance motivation for change. Counselors use specific skills to explore and increase clients’ intrinsic motivation regarding healthy behaviors.
Two other versions of Group Motivational Interviewing (MI) are also highlighted on the CEBC at Free Talk Group MI for Teens and MICUNAY Group MI for Teens.
Program Goals
The goals of CHOICE Group Motivational Interviewing (MI) for Teens are:
- Learn about healthy choices particularly regarding alcohol and other drug use
- Enhance internal motivation to change
- Reinforce this motivation
- Practice how to address high risk situations
- Develop a plan to achieve change if they are ready
Logic Model
The program representative did not provide information about a Logic Model for CHOICE Group Motivational Interviewing (MI) for Teens.
Essential Components
The essential components of CHOICE Group Motivational Interviewing (MI) for Teens include:
- All groups are facilitated by using Motivational Interviewing (MI) [note: the CEBC has only rated the use of individual Motivational Interviewing (MI) with adults]. This includes both the spirit of MI as well as the skills of MI, covered below:
- Approaching teens with the spirit of MI:
- Partnership
- Acceptance
- Compassion
- Empowerment
- Use of specific skills of MI including:
- Open-ended questions
- Reflective listening statements
- Affirmations
- Summaries
- A focus on the Four Tasks in an MI interview:
- Engaging
- Focusing
- Evoking
- Planning
- A unique aspect of MI is the highlighting and evoking of client change talk or discussion regarding desires, abilities, reasons, and need for change—from the clients’ perspectives.
- In using MI, information is provided after first exploring clients’ own knowledge and thoughts regarding a specific topic. Permission is obtained to provide other information if needed followed by evoking clients’ responses to the information.
- Group sessions provide information using the above model regarding:
- Normative alcohol and other drug use for the age group
- Alcohol and drug use effects
- How to make healthy choices
- Dealing with peer influences
- How to plan for high-risk situations
- A manual along with handouts are provided for the CHOICE group sessions that cover the topic under discussion.
- Training videos are also included.
Program Delivery
Child/Adolescent Services
CHOICE Group Motivational Interviewing (MI) for Teens directly provides services to children/adolescents and addresses the following:
- Alcohol or other drug use
- Involvement in risky situations regarding alcohol or drug use
- Risk for school disruption
Recommended Intensity:
30-minute weekly group session
Recommended Duration:
5 weeks if sessions are conducted weekly. More than one session can be conducted in a week to shorten the length of the program.
Delivery Setting
This program is typically conducted in a(n):
- School Setting (Including: Day Care, Day Treatment Programs, etc.)
Homework
This program does not include a homework component.
Languages
CHOICE Group Motivational Interviewing (MI) for Teens has materials available in a language other than English:
Spanish
For information on which materials are available in this language, please check on the program's website or contact the program representative (contact information is listed at the bottom of this page).
Resources Needed to Run Program
The typical resources for implementing the program are:
A room to conduct the session. Handouts reproduced.
Manuals and Training
Prerequisite/Minimum Provider Qualifications
There are no minimal educational requirements to be trained in MI. The CHOICE Group MI for Teens is led by facilitators at all levels of education.
However, it is suggested that group leaders obtain training in Motivational Interviewing before training on this program. General MI training can be found at https://motivationalinterviewing.org./motivational-interviewing-training
Manual Information
There is a manual that describes how to deliver this program.
Program Manual(s)
Manual details:
- D’Amico, E. J. (2020). Project CHOICE: A brief voluntary alcohol, tobacco, and drug intervention for middle school youth. Study manual. RAND. https://groupmiforteens.org/programs/choice/
The manual is accessible at https://groupmiforteens.org after registration.
Training Information
There is training available for this program.
Training Contact:
- Elizabeth D’Amico, PhD
groupmiforteens.org/programs/choice
Training Type/Location:
It is suggested that group leaders obtain additional training in MI before leading a group. General MI training can be found at https://motivationalinterviewing.org./motivational-interviewing-training
CHOICE Group MI training is via video and can be obtained from groupmiforteens.org after registering and answering questions regarding professional background and knowledge of MI.
Number of days/hours:
Five training videos regarding MI and examples of how to implement the CHOICE program are available. They range from approximately 10 minutes to 23 minutes. Continuing education credits are also available after completion of videos and quizzes. Also included is the group content as well as handouts and manuals
Implementation Information
Pre-Implementation Materials
There are no pre-implementation materials to measure organizational or provider readiness for CHOICE Group Motivational Interviewing (MI) for Teens.
Formal Support for Implementation
There is no formal support available for implementation of CHOICE Group Motivational Interviewing (MI) for Teens.
Fidelity Measures
There are fidelity measures for CHOICE Group Motivational Interviewing (MI) for Teens as listed below:
Fidelity to CHOICE Group MI is measured through a checklist of program content along with the coding of MI if one desires. The Motivational Interviewing Treatment Integrity (MITI) is an instrument that yields feedback that can be used to determine fidelity as well as increase clinical skill in the practice of motivational interviewing. The MITI measures how well or how poorly a practitioner is using MI. Coders must be trained to use this tool. Coding training can be found at www.motivationalinterviewing.org. Coders do not need to be MI practitioners.
Established Psychometrics:
Moyers, T. B., Rowell, L. N., Manuel, J. K., Ernst, D., & Houck, J. M. (2016). The Motivational Interviewing Treatment Integrity Code (MITI4): Rationale, preliminary reliability, and validity. Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment, 65, 36–42. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsat.2016.01.001
Implementation Guides or Manuals
There are implementation guides or manuals for CHOICE Group Motivational Interviewing (MI) for Teens as listed below:
The manual includes implementation information and is on the https://groupmiforteens.org website as noted above.
Implementation Cost
There have been studies of the costs of implementing CHOICE Group Motivational Interviewing (MI) for Teens which are listed below:
Kilmer, B., Burgdorf, J., D’Amico, E. J., Tucker, J. S., & Miles, J. N. V. (2011). A multi-site cost analysis of a school-based voluntary alcohol and drug prevention program. Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, 72(5), 823–832. https://doi.org/10.15288/jsad.2011.72.823
Research on How to Implement the Program
Research has been conducted on how to implement CHOICE Group Motivational Interviewing (MI) for Teens as listed below:
Chinman, M., Ebener, P., Malone, P. S., Cannon, J., D’Amico, E. J., & Acosta, J. (2018). Testing implementation support for evidence-based programs in community settings: A replication cluster-randomized trial of Getting To Outcomes®. Implementation Science, 13, Article 131. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13012-018-0825-7
Relevant Published, Peer-Reviewed Research
Child Welfare Outcome: Child/Family Well-Being
D’Amico, E. J., & Edelen, M. (2007) Pilot test of Project CHOICE: A voluntary after school intervention for middle school youth. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 21(4), 592–598. https://doi.org/10.1037/0893-164X.21.4.592
Type of Study:
Pretest–posttest study with a nonequivalent control group (Quasi-experimental)
Number of Participants:
405
Population:
- Age — 10–15 years
- Race/Ethnicity — PC Group: 43% Hispanic, 34% White, 10% Mixed, 7% Asian, and 6% African American; Control Group: 41% White, 30% Latino, 15% Mixed, 5% Asian/Pacific Islander, 4% African American, and 4% Other
- Gender — PC Group: 59% Male; Control Group: 46% Male
- Status — Participants were 6th, 7th, and 8th graders in middle school
Location/Institution: Southern California
Summary:
(To include basic study design, measures, results, and notable limitations)
The purpose of the study was to evaluate Project CHOICE (PC) [now called CHOICE Group Motivational Interviewing for Teens (CHOICE)], a voluntary alcohol and marijuana intervention for young teens. Participants volunteered to attend PC and were compared to a match control sample of students who did not attend PC. Measures utilized include school records, items from Monitoring the Future (MTF), and items from Customary Drinking and Drug Use Record. Results indicate that PC participants reported lower rates of alcohol use and lower perceptions of friends’ marijuana use and of schoolmates’ use of these substances than the matched control group. Also, self-use and perceptions of friends’ use of alcohol and marijuana increased more sharply among control school students relative to students from the PC school, regardless of participation. Limitations include the small number of participants in the PC group compared to the control group, lack of randomization, lack of follow-up, and missing data.
Length of controlled postintervention follow-up: Unclear.
D’Amico, E. J., Tucker, J. S., Miles, J. N. V., Zhou, A. J., Shih, R. A., & Green, H. D. J. (2012). Preventing alcohol use with a voluntary after school program for middle school students: Results from a cluster randomized controlled trial of CHOICE. Prevention Science, 13(4), 415–425. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11121-011-0269-7
Type of Study:
Randomized controlled trial
Number of Participants:
9,528
Population:
- Age — Not specified. Participants were in grades 6–8.
- Race/Ethnicity — 54% Hispanic, 17% Asian, 15% White, 9% multiethnic, and 3% African American
- Gender — 51% Female
- Status — Participants were 6th, 7th, and 8th graders in middle school.
Location/Institution: Southern California
Summary:
(To include basic study design, measures, results, and notable limitations)
The purpose of the study was to evaluate Project Choice (PC) [now called CHOICE Group Motivational Interviewing for Teens (CHOICE)], a voluntary after-school program for younger adolescents, which reduced both individual- and school-level alcohol use. Participants were students at schools that were randomly assigned to either PC or to a non-treatment control group. Measures utilized include the California Healthy Kids Survey, scales developed in Project ALERT, and study-developed surveys. Results indicate that rates of consumption and intentions to use alcohol were significantly lower in PC schools compared to control schools. Schoolwide-level lifetime alcohol use was significantly different between the PC and control group schools. In a school where PC was offered, 1 adolescent out of 15 was prevented from initiating alcohol use during this time period. Although not statistically significant, results indicate that past month alcohol use was also lower in PC schools. Comparisons of attendees versus matched controls yielded results for lifetime use similar to schoolwide effects. Limitations include reliance on self-report measures and concerns over statistical significance. While the sample size is large, the power of the study to detect effects is not as large as it appears due to the use of cluster randomization.
Length of controlled postintervention follow-up: Unclear.
Additional References
D'Amico, E. J., Green, H. D. J., Miles, J. N. V., Zhou, A. J., Tucker, J. S., & Shih, R. A. (2012). Voluntary after-school alcohol and drug programs for middle school youth: If you build it right, they will come. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 22(3), 571–582. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1532-7795.2012.00782.x
Contact Information
- Elizabeth D’Amico, PhD
- Agency/Affiliation: RAND Corporation
- Department: Social and Economic Well Being
- Website: groupmiforteens.org/programs/choice
- Email: groupmiforteens@rand.org
Date Research Evidence Last Reviewed by CEBC: April 2024
Date Program Content Last Reviewed by Program Staff: September 2024
Date Program Originally Loaded onto CEBC: September 2024
