Integrating Multimedia into a Drug Prevention Resource

We will establish the feasibility of integrating state-of-the-art multimedia (interactive video andanimation) into existing award-winning software - BARN (Body Awareness Resource Network). BARN was dthe University of Wisconsin (1981-88) to provide health promotion information directly to adolescentcomputer. BARN has been published since 1986 through learning Multi-Systems, Inc. (the applicant comreceived wide acceptance. The software has been evaluated and shown to provide positive health impacadolescents who use the six modules: AIDS, Alcohol and Other Drugs (AOD), Human Sexuality, Smoking,Management, and Body Management. New technology offers the opportunity to enhance BARN to improve ithealth behavior change and to become a leading educational resource. During Phase I we will 1) analymodule for appropriate use of multimedia, 2) focus on AOD by writing scripts for multimedia sequencemultimedia approaches for two sections of AOD, and 4) conduct usability testing with groups of reprePhase II of the project would complete the development of multimedia approaches and develop a CD-ROMBARN which would be tested in representative middle and high schools.