Substance Use

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Substance use touches on many facets of public policy, including health and health care, economic issues, criminal justice, and risk behaviors—particularly among youth. Accordingly, RAND conducts drug policy research that addresses a range of concerns, from treatment effectiveness, harm reduction, drug markets and supply, and predictors and consequences to evaluations of programs to prevent youth from using and abusing drugs, alcohol, and tobacco.

  • Tablets and powder under a magnifying glass, photo by Andrey Bukreev/Getty Images

    Commentary

    A New and More Dangerous Drug Market Requires a New Approach

    Mar 16, 2022

    Synthetic opioids are likely to increasingly reach illegal drug markets. Failure to recognize and respond to how rapidly drug markets have changed with the arrival of illegally manufactured synthetic opioids will continue to put many at risk of exposure to fentanyl, endangering the lives of hundreds of thousands more Americans for years to come.

  • A woman reaches for a bottle of alcohol in a store, photo by Kanawa_Studio/Getty Images

    News Release

    Alcohol Consumption Among Men Declined During Pandemic; Men and Women Report More Alcohol-Related Problems

    Jan 24, 2022

    Alcohol consumption during the coronavirus pandemic declined among men, while it remained steady among women. Researchers found that alcohol-related problems increased during the pandemic, by 49% for women and 69% for men, but the reasons for the problems remain unclear.

Explore Substance Use

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    Commentary

    The Conspiracy to Keep You Fat

    Just as we needed policies to protect people from having alcohol thrust in their faces everywhere they went, we need to develop and implement policies that protect people from food cues and triggers designed to make them eat when they're not hungry and over-consume.

    Jan 6, 2014

  • Close up of a woman talking to a group of people sitting around a table, photo by fizkes/Getty Images

    Tool

    Getting To Outcomes® (GTO) Toolkit

    The Getting To Outcomes®: Improving Community-Based Substance-Use Prevention project assesses the effectiveness of participatory methods meant to assist community coalitions in preventing substance abuse and to improve community health.

    Jan 1, 2014

  • News Release

    News Release

    Marijuana Consumption in Washington State Twice as Large as Previously Estimated

    In Washington state, marijuana consumption likely will range from 135 to 225 metric tons during 2013. Understanding the current market should help state policymakers with decisions about the number of marijuana sales licenses to issue, to project tax revenues, and provide a foundation for assessments of legalization.

    Dec 18, 2013

  • child sleeping near a Christmas tree

    Commentary

    How to Sleep in Heavenly Peace This Holiday Season

    The holiday season is a time when people try to do too much. And that often leads to stress and worry, which can be the enemies of a good night's sleep. Here are a few tricks to help manage the episodic bouts of insomnia that are common during the holidays.

    Dec 2, 2013

  • News Release

    News Release

    Influence of Pro-Smoking Media Messages Can Last for Seven Days

    College students documented their exposure to pro-smoking media messages during their normal routine over a three-week period. After exposure to just one, their smoking intentions immediately increased by an average of 22 percent. Smoking intentions decreased with each passing day but remained elevated for seven days.

    Nov 18, 2013

  • young people having a group discussion in a park

    Blog

    Group Motivational Interviewing Can Help Teens Make Healthy Choices

    Group motivational interviewing is a guided therapeutic approach that helps people think about their motivations for behavior and their commitment to change. It is an excellent fit for adolescents, because it engages them about their personal experiences while eliciting ideas about how they can change and make healthy choices.

    Oct 29, 2013

  • A man lights a marijuana cigarette.

    Commentary

    Has U.S. Gone Further Than Netherlands Over Marijuana?

    Colorado and Washington will remove the prohibition on commercial marijuana production and distribution for nonmedical purposes and start regulating and taxing it. Not even the Netherlands goes that far, writes Beau Kilmer.

    Oct 18, 2013

  • A boy points a remote control at a television

    Blog

    What Effect Does Media Have on Youth?

    American youth live in an environment saturated with media. What effects does this have on their health and well-being?

    Sep 3, 2013

  • offering a cigarette from the pack on the street

    Commentary

    Big Tobacco vs. Tobacco Regulation and Control: An Even Match?

    Anti-tobacco policies that have clear scientific support will strengthen the FDA's regulatory position. While the evidence base is solid in this area, it needs to be much stronger and broader if the TCA is going to have any lasting success against the industry.

    Aug 26, 2013

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    Commentary

    Protecting Young People from Harm: The Role of Age-Restricted Sales

    Local authorities in the UK can benefit from a new toolkit developed by RAND Europe to measure the impacts and outcomes of local regulations designed to restrict sales of products harmful to children.

    Aug 22, 2013

  • wine shopping

    Project

    Consumers' Responsiveness to Alcohol Multi-buy Sales Promotions

    Multi-buy promotions have a large impact on which alcohol products consumers purchase, according to stated-preference research by RAND Europe for Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs. The overall impact on all alcohol purchasing is somewhat smaller, though still substantial: Moderate drinkers are more likely to be swayed by these promotions, but because hazardous and harmful drinkers purchase much higher volumes of alcohol, the absolute impact on these groups is higher.

    Jul 22, 2013

  • protest against violence in Juarez, Mexico

    Commentary

    Legalization in the U.S. and Crime in Mexico

    Driving Mexican marijuana out of the U.S. would probably reduce the traffickers' export revenue by a few billion dollars a year, writes Beau Kilmer. But would reducing that revenue lead to a corresponding decrease in trafficker violence?

    May 23, 2013

  • teens making a toast with shots

    Blog

    Getting To Outcomes: Improvement of Prevention Capacity Unveiled at a Summit of Maine Officials and Stakeholders

    Community-based practitioners can improve their programs using Getting To Outcomes®, a toolkit, training, and onsite-support package which enhances their ability to prevent drug and alcohol use among youth.

    Apr 29, 2013

  • Visuals showing suppprt for marijuana legalization in Washington state and how tax revenues will benefit the community

    Commentary

    7 Key Questions on Marijuana Legalization

    Policymakers in Washington and Colorado are confronting some new and tricky issues that have never been addressed. For them, and for anyone else thinking about changing their pot laws, there are seven key decision areas that will shape the costs and benefits of marijuana legalization.

    Apr 26, 2013

  • rally to legalize marijuana

    Blog

    Ask Me Anything: Beau Kilmer Answers Drug Policy Questions on Reddit

    Beau Kilmer, co-director of the RAND Drug Policy Research Center and coauthor of Marijuana Legalization: What Everyone Needs to Know, hosted an “Ask Me Anything” (AMA) session on Reddit this week. He fielded questions from participants on a variety of drug policy issues.

    Apr 26, 2013

  • couple watching football on TV and cheering

    Commentary

    The Super Bowl Halftime Show Should Not Be Promoting a Public Health Threat

    People who consume just one or two sugar-sweetened drinks a day have a 26 percent greater risk of developing type 2 diabetes than people who rarely drink these beverages, write Kristin Van Busum and Lauren Hunter.

    Feb 1, 2013

  • young woman smoking and drinking coffee

    Blog

    Teen Employment May Not Always Be a Boon for At-Risk Youth

    For all teens, and especially those who have already experienced problems related to alcohol and drug use, it is essential to monitor the quality of work experiences and keep in mind that some work environments might increase risk for substance use.

    Dec 18, 2012

  • liquor and keys

    Blog

    The 24/7 Sobriety Project: A New Approach to Reducing Drunk Driving and Domestic Violence

    Excessive alcohol consumption costs society nearly a quarter of a trillion dollars each year. An innovative program that combines frequent alcohol testing for offenders with swift and certain sanctions for failed tests can help reduce problem drinking and improve public health.

    Nov 15, 2012

  • Gavel, alcoholic drink, and car keys

    Project

    Can the 24/7 Sobriety Program Reduce Problem Drinking and Improve Public Health?

    The 24/7 Sobriety Program requires those arrested for or convicted of alcohol-related offenses to take twice-a-day breathalyzer tests or wear a continuous alcohol monitoring bracelet. Those who fail or skip their tests are immediately subject to swift, certain but modest sanctions—typically a day or two in jail.

    Nov 15, 2012

  • News Release

    News Release

    Frequent Alcohol Testing Program Reduces DUI and Domestic Violence Arrests

    In its first six years, an innovative alcohol monitoring program called the South Dakota 24/7 Sobriety Project reduced county-level repeat DUI arrests by 12 percent and domestic violence arrests by 9 percent.

    Nov 15, 2012

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