This presentation will describe a program of research focused on 1) identifying the individual difference and structural/contextual risk factors associated with alcohol and drug misuse, and 2) developing and evaluating interventions to effectively reduce alcohol and drug misuse. This research has been guided by behavioral economic theory and laboratory research and has carefully documented that limited access to viable alternative sources of reward is a significant structural contributor to addiction risk, and that increases in substance-free reward predict reductions in substance use. This presentation will focus specifically on novel brief intervention approaches that attempt to reduce risk for substance use and enhance positive activity patterns, mood, and goal pursuit in a diverse sample of economically marginalized young adults who are not college students or graduates.
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