Law Enforcement and Drug Prevention: A Profile of the DARE Officer

• NCJ Number: 196462
• Journal: Police Chief Volume: 69 Issue: 8 Dated: August 2002 Pages: 81-88
• Author(s): Jeffrey Merrill; Tracey Dilascio; Ilana Pinsky
• Editor(s): Charles E. Higginbotham
• Date Published: August 2002
• Length: 8 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This article is an overview of the tasks, responsibilities, and efficacy of indvidual DARE drug education officers.

Abstract

The authors studied the DARE drug prevention and education program. DARE is the largest drug education program used in U.S. schools with 15,000 active DARE officers. DARE's efficacy has long been questioned and the authors point out that the program lacks rigorous evaluations. The study data consisted of interviews with DARE officers as well as information developed in DARE officer focus groups. The interview questions included the reasons why officers became DARE officers, the perception of DARE officers by their fellow police officers, the attributes of a successful DARE program, the perception of schools regarding the program, adherence by the officer to standardized DARE program content, and officers perception of youth and youthful offenders after DARE involvement. Challenges to DARE efficacy such as limited training and scarcity of resources are discussed.