GETTING TOUGH ON GATEWAY DRUGS: A Guide for the Family

by ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 1, 1984

A heavy-duty update on teenage drug use--by the former director of the White House Special Action Office on Drug Abuse--that raises major new points. DuPont focuses on what he calls the ""gateway"" drugs--marijuana, alcohol, cocaine--and, from a detailed review of recent research, concludes: ""Beginning drug use is virtually limited to the teenage years. . . once [young people] reach the age of twenty or so, they are unlikely to initiate the use of a new drug except for medical-treatment purposes."" It therefore behooves parents to try to keep their children from experimenting in the first place. To this end, DuPont explores the psychological tasks of the teenage years, as well as the family's roles, and proposes three principles of sound family behavior: 1) firm parental control leads to teenage self-control; 2) the family must act as a team, with common goals; 3) parents and children must explore and negotiate family conflicts. Considerable theory is incorporated in the discussion, and some of the text is quite demanding. Those in search of a family guide, which tells them (or helps them decide) what to do and how, should see either Poison and Newton's Not My Kid (below) or, better still, Stephen J. Levy's Managing the ""Drugs"" in Your Life (1983). Professionals, however, stand to benefit from DuPont's up-to-the-minute expertise.

Pub Date: Oct. 1, 1984

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: American Psychiatric Press

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 1984

Categories: NONFICTION