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MICUNAY Group Motivational Interviewing (MI) for Teens

Topic Areas
Scientific Rating
Child Welfare Relevance
Substance Abuse Treatment (Adolescent)
NR  — Not able to be Rated
Medium

About This Program

Target Population: Urban American Indian/Alaska Native teens 14-18

For children/adolescents ages: 14 – 18

Program Overview

MICUNAY (MI and Culture for Urban Native American Youth) Group Motivational Interviewing (MI) for Teens is a group-based prevention/intervention program that addresses substance use and ways to increase protective factors. MICUNAY is for American Indian and Alaska Native adolescents ages 14-18 and comprises three workshops that integrate traditional practices with MI with a focus on healthy choices. 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. MICUNAY prioritizes respectful interactions and client autonomy and decision-making. The program balances the more complicated interpersonal dynamics of the group process alongside the individual experiences and needs of the participants.

Two other versions of Group Motivational Interviewing (MI) are also highlighted on the CEBC at Free Talk Group MI for Teens and CHOICE Group MI for Teens.

Program Goals

The goals of MICUNAY 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
  • Connect with culture and tradition to increase protective factors and focus on making healthy choices
  • 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 MICUNAY Group Motivational Interviewing (MI) for Teens.

Essential Components

The essential components of MICUNAY 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
    • Engaging in traditional American Indian/Alaska Native practices such as:
      • Beading
      • Prayer
      • Cooking and eating traditional Native American foods
    • Content regarding ways to reduce alcohol and other drug use is framed around the use of a Medicine Wheel, with an emphasis on physical, emotion, and spiritual health.
  • A manual along with handouts are provided for the MICUNAY group sessions that cover the topic under discussion.
  • Training videos are also included.

Program Delivery

Child/Adolescent Services

MICUNAY 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
  • Decreased participation in Native American traditional practices

Recommended Intensity:

2-hour weekly workshop

Recommended Duration:

3 weeks if sessions are conducted weekly. More than one session can be conducted in a week to shorten the length of the program.

Delivery Settings

This program is typically conducted in a(n):

  • Community-based Agency / Organization / Provider
  • School Setting (Including: Day Care, Day Treatment Programs, etc.)

Homework

This program does not include a homework component.

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 MICUNAY Group MI for Teens is led by facilitators at all levels of education. The facilitator should be American Indian/Alaska Native as they will be focusing on traditional Native American practices.

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:

The manual is accessible at https://groupmiforteens.org after registration.

Training Information

There is training available for this program.

Training Contact:
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.

MICUNAY 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:

Nine training videos regarding MI and examples of how to implement the MICUNAY program are available and range from approximately 5 minutes to 30minutes. Continuing education credits are also available after completion of videos and quizzes. Also included is the group content as well as handouts and manuals.

There is a fidelity instrument and implementation manual as well.

Relevant Published, Peer-Reviewed Research

D'Amico, E. J., Dickerson, D. L., Brown, R. A., Johnson, C. L., Klein, D. J., & Agniel, D. (2020). Motivational Interviewing and Culture for Urban Native American youth (MICUNAY): A randomized controlled trial. Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment, 111, 86–99 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsat.2019.12.011

Type of Study: Randomized controlled trial
Number of Participants: 185

Population:

  • Age — 14–18 years old
  • Race/Ethnicity — Participants marked “all that apply”: 81% American Indian/Alaska Native, 46% Hispanic/Latino, 17% White/Caucasian, 11% Black/African American, 4% Asian/Asian American/Pacific Islander, and 4% Other
  • Gender — 51% Female
  • Status — Participants were adolescents recruited from the urban cities across California who either verbally self-identified as AI/AN or were identified as AI/AN by a parent or community elder

Location/Institution: Large cities in northern, central, and southern California

Summary: (To include basic study design, measures, results, and notable limitations)
The purpose of the study was to test two cultural interventions that addressed alcohol and other drug (AOD) use: MICUNAY (Motivational Interviewing and Culture for Urban Native American Youth) [now called, MICUNAY Group Motivational Interviewing (MI) for Teens] and CWG (Community Wellness Gathering). Participants were randomized to MICUNAY + CWG or CWG only. Measures utilized include the Monitoring the Future items, the Multigroup Ethnic Identity Measure (MEIM), and the Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Fatigue-Spiritual Questions instrument, or FACIT-SP 12, as well as self-report on consequences of alcohol and marijuana use and Intentions to use AOD. Results indicate that AOD use remained stable over the course of the study, and there were no significant differences between the CWG only group and the MICUNAY + CWG group on adolescents’ intentions to use AOD, time spent with peers who use AOD, personal use, consequences, or spirituality and identity. Limitations include significant differences in gender between the two groups at baseline, that 19% of the subjects did not identify as AI/AN on the study survey, concerns about generalizability outside of California, the lack of a no intervention control group, and high attrition rates

Length of controlled postintervention follow-up: 6 months.

Additional References

Dickerson, D. L., Baldwin, J. A., Belcourt, A., Belone, L., Gittelsohn, J., Kaholokula, K., Lowe, J., Patten, C., & Wallerstein, N. (2020). Encompassing cultural contexts within scientific research methodologies in the development of health promotion interventions. Prevention Science, 21, 33–42. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11121-018-0926-1

Jernigan, V. B., D’Amico, E. J., Duran, B., & Buchwald, D. (2020). Multilevel and community-level interventions with Native Americans: Challenges and opportunities. Prevention Science, 21, 65–73. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11121-018-0916-3

Jernigan, V. B., D’Amico, E. J., & Kaholokula, J. K. (2020). Prevention research with Indigenous communities to expedite dissemination and implementation efforts. Prevention Science, 21, 74–82. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11121-018-0951-0

Contact Information

Elizabeth D’Amico, PhD
Agency/Affiliation: RAND Corporation
Department: Social and Economic Well Being
Website: groupmiforteens.org/programs/micunay
Email:

Date Research Evidence Last Reviewed by CEBC: February 2024

Date Program Content Last Reviewed by Program Staff: September 2024

Date Program Originally Loaded onto CEBC: September 2024