Parent resource to improve communication for adolescent substance use prevention

The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism awarded Innovation Research And Training, Inc. $999,430 on September 1, 2026, under the Alcohol Research Programs grant program (CFDA 93.273) to complete development and evaluation of Media Ready Parent (MRP), a web-based intervention designed to improve parent-adolescent communication about media literacy and substance use prevention.

MRP delivers an interactive, self-paced online program that equips parents with media literacy skills, knowledge about adolescent development and substance use, and practice in high-quality parent-adolescent communication. The Phase 2 project builds on feasibility and preliminary efficacy demonstrated in earlier prototype testing. Work includes completing MRP development with input from advisory panels of parents and community prevention and addiction specialists, developing AI-enhanced communication skill practice boosters, and implementing just-in-time reminders tailored to parents' schedules. The award also funds evaluation of the program's sustained impact on parent and adolescent outcomes.

Innovation Research And Training, Inc., a woman-owned small business based in Durham, North Carolina, serves as the recipient. Performance takes place in Durham, NC 27713. The award period runs from September 1, 2026, through August 31, 2028.

Abstract

Adolescent substance use is a critical public health concern, and media - which are integral in the lives of adolescents - are saturated with messages promoting substance use as normative and fun. Exposure to pro- substance media messages encourages adolescent substance use. Youth need skills to interpret their media-rich environment and think critically about pro-substance messages. High-quality parent-adolescent communication about media and substances can promote critical thinking about media and prevent adolescent substance use. Unfortunately, many parents are not engaging in high-quality communication with their children, and there is a lack of accessible evidence-based programs to help parents have these important conversations. Parents want and need an evidenced-based, easy to access, online resource to help them talk with their children about alcohol, drugs, and media. To fill this GAP, our team conceived media ready parent (MRP), an innovative self-paced program designed to provide parents with media literacy skills, knowledge about adolescent development and substance use, and practice in high quality parent-adolescent communication, delivered through an interactive web-based software application. A feasibility study of a prototype of MRP has shown the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of the program for enhancing parent- adolescent communication. However, additional work is needed to complete the development of MRP and evaluate the sustained impact of the program on parent and adolescent outcomes. Thus, in this phase 2 project, we propose to complete the development of MRP with the assistance of advisory panels of parents and community prevention and addiction specialists (aim 1). We will develop boosters that include innovative AI- enhanced communication skill practice and just-in-time reminders that are tailored to parents' schedules and capitalize on opportunities to implement new skills. After development, we will conduct a two-arm RCT with 400 parent-adolescent dyads (i.e., adolescents in grades 6-8), randomly assigned to receive MRP or an active control program (aim 2). Parents and adolescents will complete online questionnaires at pretest, posttest, and 6-month follow-up to assess the efficacy of the program for impacting frequency, content, and quality of parent-adolescent communication about media and substances; parent and adolescent media and substance use cognitions; and adolescent substance use behaviors. Participants and the advisory panels will provide program feedback that will inform product marketability. This project will result in a commercially-available product that fills a significant GAP in the market by providing an effective, highly relevant, engaging, and flexible resource that has been created for busy parents raising adolescents in the digital age and will be ready for wide-scale implementation across the U.S.