A Systematic Review of Effective Youth Prevention Education: Implications for Internet Safety Education

Page 1 ABSTRACT: Over the past two decades, a wide array of internet safety education materials and programs have developed to increase positive youth behavior and safety online. Although it is a new area of prevention, programs should incorporate practices that prior prevention evaluation studies tell us work best. To inform internet safety education, 31 youth prevention education meta-analyses across a wide range of youth prevention (substance abuse, risky sex behavior, delinquency, etc.) were coded to identify prevention program characteristics shown by research to be most effective. The review identified that active, skill-based lessons, focused on researchbased causal and risk factors, and provided with adequate dosage were key. Such strategies must be included as a starting place when developing prevention in new areas of youth risk concerns. Implications of the finding suggest some need for reevaluating how internet safety education is delivered in the future.