Eric Canen – Wyoming Survey & Analysis Center

Wyoming Prevention Needs Assessment

Eric Canen — Tue, 01 Oct 2024 21:23:55 +0000

The Wyoming Prevention Needs Assessment (PNA), sponsored by the Wyoming Department of Health and facilitated by the Wyoming Survey & Analysis Center at the University of Wyoming, has been collecting and reporting data on student behaviors and perceptions since the 2005-2006 school year. The PNA tracks the prevalence of alcohol, tobacco, and other drug use among students in grades 6-12, as well as a wide array of attitudes, beliefs, and perceptions related to substance use. Over time, the scope of the PNA has expanded to include data on mental health, school climate, and availability of social support.
The PNA provides essential data that supports the development and evaluation of prevention strategies, interventions, and policies across the state of Wyoming. Schools, school districts, and communities utilize this data to tailor prevention efforts to their specific needs. Data from the survey is available publicly at both the state and county levels, with most participating school districts able to access their own student data.
The most recent data collection and reporting effort, under the current contract, is for the 2024 cycle, continuing the long-standing commitment to informing public health and educational initiatives in Wyoming.

Evaluation of the 2023 North Dakota Strategic Prevention Framework Partnerships for Success

Eric Canen — Tue, 01 Oct 2024 21:03:34 +0000

The 2023 North Dakota Strategic Prevention Framework Partnerships for Success (SPF-PFS) Evaluation and Data Technical Assistance Project is funded by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and administered in collaboration with the North Dakota Department of Health and Human Services. The Wyoming Survey & Analysis Center (WYSAC) at the University of Wyoming serves as the independent evaluator and data analyst for the project, tasked with assessing performance and providing technical assistance around data to the state and funded communities.
This initiative aims to reduce alcohol misuse and its consequences among underserved populations, including college students, active-duty military personnel, and children of parents with mental illness (COPMI). Using SAMHSA’s Strategic Prevention Framework (SPF), the project builds prevention capacity supporting up to five subrecipient communities that will implement evidence-based strategies tailored to local needs.
WYSAC’s evaluation plan includes both process and outcome assessments, focusing on the effectiveness of the implemented strategies and their impact on substance use behaviors and health outcomes. Data collection efforts will utilize surveys such as the Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) and National College Health Assessment (NCHA), along with administrative data sources like alcohol-related crime and vehicle crash reports. The evaluation results will guide ongoing prevention efforts and ensure alignment with state objectives and SAMHSA’s national prevention goals.

UW Survey Finds Majority Support for Marijuana Legalization in State

Eric Canen — Tue, 08 Dec 2020 20:47:31 +0000

December 8, 2020 – Wyoming residents have steadily changing opinions regarding the use and possession of marijuana, according to a new survey by the Wyoming Survey and Analysis Center (WYSAC) at the University of Wyoming.

Over half (54 percent) of Wyoming residents now say they support allowing adults in Wyoming to legally possess marijuana for personal use. This continues the steady increase in support observed from 2014, 2016 and 2018, when support rose from 37 percent to 41 percent to 49 percent, respectively.

Looking across age groups, there is a clear pattern of younger age groups expressing more support for marijuana legalization. This support decreases as age increases — this observed pattern is a statistically significant trend.

There is popular support among younger Wyoming residents, with a majority of 18- to 24-year-olds (67 percent), 25- to 34-year-olds (74 percent), 35- to 44-year-olds (68 percent) and 55- to 64-year-olds (51 percent) supporting legalization. Support for legalization falls below a majority of those aged 45-55 (45 percent), 65-74 (40 percent) and 75-older (30 percent).

According to Rodney Wambeam, a senior research scientist at WYSAC, the support for recreational marijuana use reflects a decrease in the perceived risk or harm related to the drug.

“Despite the increasing dangers of marijuana use, such as addiction or drugged driving, young people in particular seem to view marijuana as a safe and natural alternative to alcohol or other illicit drugs,” Wambeam says.

As was the case in 2018, a large majority (85 percent) of Wyoming residents say they support the legalization of marijuana for medical purposes if a doctor prescribes it. This has remained steady from 2018, when 86 percent reported that they support this.

Three-quarters of Wyoming residents (75 percent) believe that people convicted of possessing small amounts of marijuana should not serve time in jail. This has increased from 69 percent in 2018 and from 66 percent in 2014.

“As laws regarding the legalization and decriminalization of marijuana change around the U.S., especially in nearby states, it’s not surprising to see attitudes in Wyoming change as well,” says Brian Harnisch, senior research scientist at WYSAC. “In all bordering states except Idaho, marijuana or medical marijuana has been legalized to some extent or decriminalized.”

The statewide survey was conducted Oct. 8-29, yielding 614 responses from randomly selected Wyoming citizens. The margin of error for the distribution of responses on any individual survey question is plus or minus 4 percentage points. Men and women from all age groups are represented, and all counties in Wyoming are proportionally represented in the survey sample. The final survey data have been weighted to reflect the actual population distribution in Wyoming on these key demographic characteristics.

Both landline and cellular telephone numbers were randomly generated for the study, resulting in 82 percent of completed surveys on cell phones. The survey is funded by WYSAC and UW’s School of Politics, Public Affairs and International Studies.

Complete survey results are available at: https://wysac.uwyo.edu/wysac/reports/View/6710.

WYSAC surveyed the young adults in North Dakota about alcohol, marijuana, and prescription drug abuse

Eric Canen — Tue, 27 Oct 2020 21:39:20 +0000

The North Dakota Department of Human Service, Behavioral Health Division (BHD), contracted with the Wyoming Survey and Analysis Center (WYSAC) at the University of Wyoming to conduct the third iteration of the North Dakota Survey of Young Adults. This survey was part of a larger project called the ND Partnerships for Success Strategic Prevention Framework (PFS) State Incentive Grant. As part of that project, the BHD was tasked with maintaining a data workgroup called the State Epidemiological Outcomes Workgroup. Using some of the PFS funds designated to fund unique data collection, the BHD contracted with WYSAC to conduct the survey beginning in 2016, with subsequent survey administrations in 2018 and 2020. The survey’s major topics included alcohol use, misuse of prescription drugs, marijuana use, and mental health concerns. It tracked trends and changes in these topics over time and served as a public health surveillance measure for young adults, ages 18 to 29.

Some key findings from the report include:

The prevalence rates for self-reported alcohol use have remained stable since 2016
Men and women had similar alcohol use except for binge drinking
Young adults reported low and steady rates of prescription drug misuse
Majority of young adults (53%) supported legalizing possession of small amounts of marijuana for personal use
Three-quarters (77%) of young adults thought smoking marijuana once or twice a week had no risk or slight risk of harm
One in ten (11%) of young adults seriously considered suicide in the past year

For more details, please check out the report, which is available both on the North Dakota BHD Website, and WYSAC’s site.

Stimulant Use in Wyoming

Eric Canen — Thu, 24 Sep 2020 19:00:45 +0000

The State of Wyoming expressed concerns that stimulant use, in particular amphetamine and methamphetamine use, was a potentially rising problem that communities and the state were having to address. WYSAC, as part of a contract with the Wyoming Department of Health, was tasked with gathering and reporting all available state-level data and information about this topic. The results from that data collection effort indicated that there was a gap in stimulant-related data. Specifically, consumption of illicit and licit stimulants remained low or was decreasing in recent years; yet, the consequences related to stimulant use were increasing.

Based on surveys of youth and adults, only small proportions of them reported having used stimulants in the past month, which has remained relatively stable over time. However, the number of admissions to treatment, methamphetamine-related arrests, and overdoses were rising. Ultimately, the report concludes that gathering more data about the risk factors related to stimulant use and misuse would bridge the knowledge gap between these divergent findings. It would also help policymakers and prevention professionals better target their support and interventions to address these concerns.

This report’s information is presented to allow the Wyoming government, community coalitions, and other stakeholders to choose and implement targeted strategies and solutions for prevention and treatment. To read the report in detail, see https://bit.ly/wystim. A condensed issue brief outlining the key findings of this report is found at https://bit.ly/short-wy-stim. For a one-page fact sheet highlighting key findings, go to https://bit.ly/wy-stim-fact.

This project is a part of the Wyoming State Epidemiological Outcomes Workgroup (SEOW) supported by the Wyoming Department of Health, Public Health Division, with funds from the 2015 Strategic Prevention Framework Partnerships for Sucess Grant by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).

More People are Drinking During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Eric Canen — Fri, 14 Aug 2020 17:19:44 +0000

WYSAC recently completed an internet survey involving behavior and attitudes toward COVID-19. We found that both the sale and consumption of alcohol has increased from February to April 2020, during the pandemic. After governments and employers put into place COVID-19 mitigation efforts, 17% of people reported increased alcohol consumption. Approximately 60% of that increase was due to boredom, while almost 46% and 44% were due to isolation and stress, respectively. Moreover, when looking at sales data, there were 5% more wine and spirit sales in Wyoming between the first few months of 2020 than in 2019, despite a significant decrease in the number of eligible liquor licenses. Continued monitoring will help us understand if these rises in alcohol use are temporary or whether they represent a lasting concern that may affect health in Wyoming. To see a fact sheet of the survey results in detail, go to the following link: https://bit.ly/wy-alc-covid

The Value of Prevention: Potential Cost Savings from Delaying Youth Alcohol Use in Wyoming

Eric Canen — Tue, 01 Aug 2017 18:24:02 +0000

In 2017, economists at WYSAC completed a study of the value of prevention in Wyoming. This research began in 2012 when WYSAC was able to estimate the societal cost of alcohol in Wyoming at $843 million in 2010. Researchers also knew than since the prevention of underage drinking began in 2001, Wyoming communities have contributed to a 40% decrease in past month alcohol use by teenagers.

Putting these together and using peer reviewed literature on delaying the onset of alcohol use, WYSAC estimates that, in 2014 alone, local efforts prevented 389 students from developing alcohol use disorders. This saves Wyoming $122 million over the lives of those individuals.

To read the full report go to https://wysac.uwyo.edu/wysac/reports/View/5556.

The 2017 North Dakota Community Preparedness Survey

Eric Canen — Mon, 03 Jul 2017 20:46:42 +0000

The survey is administered by WYSAC under contract to the North Dakota Department of Human Services. The survey will measure community and state level attitudes toward drugs and alcohol use and abuse and public support for drug and alcohol abuse prevention initiatives.

The results will be compared to the identical survey conducted in 2015 to measure change over time, and will be used to inform policy making efforts and to provide information to the public in social marketing and public service announcements.

The survey is conducted using a mixed mode of survey administration where respondents are given the opportunity to complete the survey online, or using a paper survey sent via USPS.

North Dakota Central Valley Youth Survey Resource Center

Eric Canen — Fri, 01 May 2015 21:04:51 +0000

The Central Valley Youth Survey website is an online resource center for partners of the North Dakota Central Valley Youth Survey. CVYS is a local effort to better understand youth alcohol and drug use in Stutsman and Logan Counties in North Dakota.

The survey monitors the percent of students that have used or are currently using alcohol, and/or other drugs. It also measures a wide variety of attitudes, beliefs, and perceptions related to alcohol and other drugs.

[button type=”success” size=”lg” link=”http://centralvalleysurvey.org”] View Project [/button]

Wyoming Prevention Needs Assessment Survey

Eric Canen — Sun, 01 Jul 2012 20:06:28 +0000

The Wyoming Prevention Needs Assessment Survey allows visitors to explore survey data and interactively compare trend results, demographics and indicators. Users can search data, create charts and export customized datasets.

The PNA is a survey of Wyoming middle and high school students focusing on attitudes, beliefs and perceptions about alcohol, tobacco and drug use. Data is used by schools, districts, communities and the state of Wyoming to evaluate prevention strategies and policies.

[button type=”success” size=”lg” link=”http://www.pnasurvey.org/Default.aspx”] View Project [/button]