Reducing inhalant use in Latino adolescents through synchronized parent-adolescent interventions

This article presents the effects of a synchronized Latino youth/parent intervention on adolescent inhalant use. The analytic sample included only Latino adolescents (n = 487) between the ages of 12 and 14. Randomized at the school-level, the design included three possible conditions: (1) child and parent received the prevention interventions, (2) only the parent received the prevention intervention, (3) neither child or parent received the prevention interventions. Drawing from the eco-developmental perspective, the overall hypothesis was that youth randomly assigned to the condition with both interventions will report the strongest inhalant use prevention outcomes. Descriptive statistics and regression tests of significant group differences by treatment condition confirmed the overall hypothesis. Children receiving the youth intervention and whose parents received the synchronized parenting intervention reported the strongest desired inhalant prevention effects. The findings are interpreted from an eco-developmental perspective and implications for practice, policy, and future research are discussed.