Is there a Problem? Surveys aim to Get People's Perceptions on youth Alcohol, Drug, Tobacco Use

Source from:  By Natalie J. OstgaardCity Editor Wednesday, July 23, 2008 07/28/2008

One late afternoon/early evening last week, several Polk County residents received a phone call that at first impression might have seemed like a solicitation. Within a few seconds, however, it was clear from listening to the young voice on the other end that this was a legitimate survey being conducted, its results having strong implications on youth and others. With laptops in hand to punch in data, members of The minor League called a random sampling of residents in 15 communities throughout the county between 5 and 7:30 p.m. on July 15 and asked if they'd like to participate in the Chemical Free Polk County Phone Survey. If they agreed, which most who listened to the pitch did, the interviewer went through a series 20 questions relating to youth tobacco, alcohol and drug usage and their perceptions on these. TmL is a youth-led, adult-guided organization under the umbrella of Polk County Public Health that promotes healthy decision making by youth in order to reduce use of alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs and related risky behaviors. "We'll use the results of this survey in conjunction with those of our annual youth survey that's done in the spring," said D'Anne Johnson, coordinator for TmL. "The findings will help tailor our programs, adjust what's needed so they're more effective for our youth and the communities we serve." Johnson said the interview process was quick, taking only about three to four minutes. PCPH staff developed the survey with questions such as "How concerned are you about underage tobacco ... alcohol use?" (on a rating scale), "How easy is it to obtain?" "Where do they get these products?" and "How many times a week do you see youth in public smoke cigarettes ... drink alcohol?" "When we put the phone surveys next to the student surveys, we're finding some contradictions in perceptions between kids and adults," she explained. "For example, the phone survey asks questions on whether the respondent has children and if so, how often they talk to them about these things. The parents' answers tend to reflect more discussion than the kids' do." Last week's calling session was the second conducted in the phone survey, the first done in February. "There were a lot more people home, answering the phone in February than there were on a nice July day," Johnson commented. An evaluator has been systematically compiling random lists of residents in each community for them to call. While the goal was for a 25 percent countywide response rate to those called, Johnson said it averaged out to 19.4 percent, with some communities responding better than others. The evaluator, who also compiles results of the surveys, will recommend where to go from here, if another calling session is in order to get a more accurate account of what's going on in people's minds. "It's difficult to get kids together to even do this," said Johnson. "This was our fourth attempt in setting up a date." TmL Co-President Cameron Smith of Fosston, one of the students conducting the survey last week, said it was an interesting experience. "It helped me with my public speaking skills," he said. "Most of the people were really nice and glad to be of service, but a few weren't. A couple hung up on me, probably thought it was a sales call. Then there was one who was real chatty. She didn't want to hang up." Enditem