The Cannabis Youth Treatment (CYT) experiment: rationale, study design and analysis plans.
OBJECTIVE
This paper provides a description of the rationale, study design, treatments and assessment procedures used in the Cannabis Youth Treatment (CYT) experiment.


METHODS
CYT was designed to (a) test the relative effectiveness, cost and benefit-cost of five promising treatment interventions under field conditions and (b) provide evidence based manual-guided models of these interventions to the treatment field.


METHODS
The study involved two community-based treatment programs and two major medical centers.


METHODS
Participants were 600 adolescents recruited from the regular intake who were between the ages of 12 and 18, had used marijuana in the past 90 days, and met one or more criteria of dependence or abuse.


METHODS
Participants were randomly assigned to one of five interventions: Motivational Enhancement Therapy (MET), Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Family Support Network (FSN), Adolescent Community Reinforcement Approach (ACRA), or Multidimensional Family Therapy (MDFT).


METHODS
Self-report data were collected at intake, 3, 6, 9 and 12 months post discharge using the Global Appraisal of Individual Needs (GAIN), as well as several supplemental self-reports, collateral reports, urine testing, and service logs.


RESULTS
This paper reports on the study's implementation including the psychometric properties of the measures (alphas over 0.8), validity of self-report (kappa over 0.6), high rates of treatment completion (81% completed two or more months), and high rates of follow-up (over 94% per wave).


CONCLUSIONS
The feasibility of implementing the CYT manual-guided treatment and quality assurance model in community-based adolescent treatment programs is discussed.
Dennis
Michael
M
Chestnut Health Systems (CHS), Bloomington, Chicago, and Madison, IL 61701, USA. mdennis@chestnut.org
Titus
Janet C
JC
Diamond
Guy
G
Donaldson
Jean
J
Godley
Susan H
SH
Tims
Frank M
FM
Webb
Charles
C
Kaminer
Yifrah
Y
Babor
Thomas
T
Roebuck
M C
MC
Godley
Mark D
MD
Hamilton
Nancy
N
Liddle
Howard
H
Scott
Christy K
CK
D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior / Q000523:psychology; D002648:Child; D015928:Cognitive Behavioral Therapy / Q000379:methods; D003362:Cost-Benefit Analysis; D005196:Family Therapy / Q000379:methods; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D002189:Marijuana Abuse / Q000191:economics / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D009042:Motivation; D011785:Quality Assurance, Health Care; D012944:Social Support