Can communities assess support for preventing adolescent alcohol and otherdrug use? Reliability and validity of a community assessment inventory

This study examines the reliability and validity of the Youth Support Inven tory, a tool designed for community coalitions to assess the availability o f local resources and supports that previous research indicates are importa nt for preventing adolescent alcohol and other drug use. Citizen members in 17 community coalitions completed the inventory. In tests of validity a hi gher score (i.e., more community support) was associated with less adolesce nt alcohol use. In tests of reliability the inventory was reduced from 55 t o 40 items (alpha = .71). Of the prevention strategies identified by the co alition, 94% addressed resources the local assessment indicated were not ex tensively available in the community.