Abuso de alcohol e intervención mediante habilidades sociales en estudiantes del colegio “Ezequiel Cárdenas Espinoza” Azogues-Ecuador

Abstract

Objective: To identify cases of alcohol abuse and develop a prevention strategy through the strengthening of social skills from a cognitive-behavioral approach. Material and Methods: A study with a quantitative approach and a descriptive and intervention design was developed. About 232 students were enrolled in Ezequiel Cardenas Espinoza High School in Azogues, who agreed to participate by informed consent, and who had no physical or mental illness. The Self Reporting Questionnaire (SRQ) and CAPs were applied to evaluate the knowledge, attitudes and practices. A psychotherapeutic program with cognitive behavioral approach also was applied to enhance the social skills of selected students in 16 sessions with specific subtopics through participatory and motivational workshops. Results: About 232 students had an average age of 14.9 ± 2.07 years. The 47% male and 53% female; according to the SRQ the 23.3% (n = 54) of students consumed alcohol with a pattern that suggests problematic consumption, men consume more than women in relation 3 to 1. With the prevention strategy focused on cognitive-behavioral approach, significant statistical changes were obtained in knowledge and attitudes (p <0.05), but not in changing practices (p> 0.05). Conclusion: The prevalence of alcohol abuse in the students from Ezequiel Cardenas HighSchool is higher than the reported in other studies. The Intervention with cognitive behavioral approach by strengthening social skills produced an improvement in knowledge and attitudes.