About the Research
The Association of Maternal and Child Health Programs released a statement here about “How AMCHP Thinks About Evidence.” SPIFFY echoes their beliefs about what constitutes as evidence: “Anything that demonstrates a given activity is having an intended impact for a specific community or population. Recognizing that public health occurs in “real world” settings, what we consider evidence should not be limited to that which comes from controlled scientific research; it should also expand to include and uplift evidence that is defined by impacted communities and represents the values, needs, and preferences of those with lived experience.” (source)
Research Resources
On this page, you will find traditional published research studies on the topics of substance-use, mental health, and upstream prevention. You can visit our Data page to learn more about the community assessments that the SPIFFY Coalition has conducted and incorporated into our strategic planning.
Click the boxes to the right to view research resources.
Substances
General
- The 2023 New England PTTC Research & Design (RAD) Prevention Fellowship Products (Resource link)
Opioids:
- Brandeis Opioid Crisis in Western MA (Research study link)
Tobacco:
- Report: Stopping Menthol, Saving Lives (Research study link)
- Colliding Crises: Youth Mental Health and Nicotine Use (Research study link)
- The Health Consequences of Smoking—50 Years of Progress A Report of the Surgeon General (Research study link)
Cannabis:
- Preventing Marijuana Use Among Youth (Research study link)
- Marijuana Policy in Massachusetts: From: Pediatricians, Mental Health and Addiction Clinicians & Scientists of Massachusetts (upload from Drive)
- A Public Health Framework for Legalized Retail Marijuana Based on the US Experience: Avoiding a New Tobacco Industry (upload from Drive)
- Summary of Research Articles (by Johnny’s Ambassadors – relationship between cannabis use and mental illness (Research studies link)
- Smart Approaches to Marijuana Peer-Reviewed Research (Research studies link)
- Alcohol and Cannabis Use and the Developing Brain (Research study link)
Alcohol:
- National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism: Research (Research studies link)
- Alcohol and the Adolescent Brain: What We’ve Learned and Where the Data Are Taking Us (Research link)
- Fast Facts: Alcohol Outlet Density (Resource link)
Mental Health and Upstream Prevention
- In Conversation: What Do Rising Rates of Anxiety and Depression Mean for Families, Schools, and Communities? (Research study link)
- Children and Mental Health Preventive Approaches to Anxiety and Depression (Research study link)
- Risk and Protective Factors – SAMHSA informational PDF (Research study link)
- Global Prevalence of Depressive and Anxiety Symptoms in Children and Adolescents During COVID-19 A Meta-analysis (Research study link)
- Review of risk and protective factors of substance use and problem use in emerging adulthood (Research study link)
- Mental Health of Black Transgender and Nonbinary Young People (Resource link)
School Research
- Risk for alcohol use/misuse among entering college students: The role of personality and stress (Research study link)
- The National Child Traumatic Stress – Creating, Supporting, and Sustaining Trauma-Informed Schools: A System Framework (Research study link)
- Structures for Belonging: A Synthesis of Research on Belonging-Supportive Learning Environments (Research study link)
- STUDENTS WEIGH IN, PART II: Learning & Well-Being During COVID-19 (Research study link)
- From Insights to Action Redefining State Efforts to Support Social and Emotional Learning (Research study link)
- When Schools Go Dark, School Counselors Shine: School Counseling During a Global Pandemic (Research study link)
- The Time to Act Is Now: Investing in LGBTQIA2S+ Student Mental Health in K-12 Schools With a Youth-Centered Approach (Research study link)
- Inclusive Learning: A Synthesis of 20+ Years of Research on the Education and Wellbeing Impacts of Inclusive Curriculum, Instruction, and School Books (GLESN Research Brief, Summer 2024) (Research study link)