Prevention Plus Wellness (PPW) programs come with an optional online goal plan which behavioral health specialists can provide to young people so they can set goals to avoid substance use and increase their protective healthy behaviors.
So, we decided to review the data from the online goal plan to determine what prevention goals youth are setting for themselves.
A total of 228 young people completed the online goal plan from 2020-2024. Most were female (61%) and were either 14-16 years old (35%) or 19-21 years old (42%).
When asked which of the following do you pledge to avoid or reduce during the next 7-days in order to maintain and active and healthy lifestyle, most participants responded:
- Alcohol: 84%
- Tobacco: 54%
- E-Cigarettes: 52%
- Non-Medical Opioids: 52%
- Marijuana: 51%
When asked which of the following healthy habits will you work on improving during the next 7-days, participants responded:
- Getting 8 or more hours of sleep each night: 37%
- Participating in some fun physical activity or sports at least 30 minutes 4-5 days a week: 26%
- Eating a healthy breakfast every day: 19%
- Practicing a stress control technique most days a week: 17%
All but two participants wrote a measurable and attainable healthy habit goal, including the exact amount (quantity) and frequency of that habit during the next week.
Participants were asked who else will sign their goal plans to make it an official contract. Most responded a trusted and supportive friend (42%), followed by a teacher (24%) or mom or dad (17%).
Most said they planned to post their goals on their bedroom wall or mirror (47%) or TV or computer (18%) to remind themselves to monitor their healthy habits.
Participants rated their goal plan experience 4.6 on a 5-star scale.
Conclusions
Most young people who completed an online goal plan were either adolescents or young adults, and 8 out of 10 wanted to avoid or reduce alcohol use, but over half also wanted to avoid or reduce their use of tobacco, e-cigarettes, non-medical opioids and marijuana consumption.
At the same time, over a third of young people set goals to increase their sleep, over a quarter wanted to increase their physical activity, and nearly one in five wanted to eat a healthy breakfast more often.
Almost all participants completed a concrete goal to improve a healthy habit and asked either a friend, teacher or parent to co-sign their goal.
The goal plan was successful in having young people identify specific substances to avoid or reduce, set a concrete healthy behavior goal to increase and monitor, and identify someone to help in their goal planning.
Lastly, the goal plan experience was highly rated by participating adolescents and young adults, indicating more young people should be offered this resource to help them identify, set and monitor multiple health behaviors goals for enhancing their physical and mental wellbeing.
Goal Setting Resources
Online PPW Goal Plan: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/PPWGoalPlan
Healthy Behavior Aroma Stickers: https://preventionpluswellness.com/products/healthy-behavior-aroma-stickers
Healthy Behavior Goal Tracking Chart: https://preventionpluswellness.com/products/healthy-behavior-goal-tracking-wall-chart
Learn more about PPW resources: https://preventionpluswellness.com