William DeJong

William DeJong (born 1950)[1] is a Professor in the Department of Community Health Sciences at the Boston University School of Public Health.

Education and career

DeJong received his AB degree from Dartmouth College in 1973, and subsequently received his MA and PhD from Stanford University. He received his PhD in 1977 in social psychology. From 1995 to 2004, he was the director of the United States Department of Education's Center for Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse and Violence Prevention.[2]

Research

DeJong's research covers multiple areas in the field of public health, including alcohol and tobacco control, health communications, and health promotion.[2] In 2014, he co-authored a review article that found that the United States' legal drinking age of 21 had saved lives since it was raised to that level as a result of a law passed in 1984.[3]

Views

DeJong has been critical of designated driver programs, saying in 1994 that there was no evidence that they were effective.[4] In 2001, when California State University adopted a new set of anti-drinking policies such as treatment programs and advisory boards, DeJong said that this represented a major change from the previous approach most schools used to address drinking on their campuses, which previously focused mainly on communicating messages.[5] He has also said that almost all experts agree that Alcoholics Anonymous is effective,[6] and has harshly criticized the alcoholic beverage industry for, according to him, "rely to a great extent on underage drinkers and abusive drinkers for the profits that they make."[7]

References
  1. "DeJong, William, 1950-". VIAF. Retrieved 3 March 2016.
  2. "William DeJong, PhD". Boston University. Retrieved 3 March 2016.
  3. DeJong, W; Blanchette, J (2014). "Case closed: research evidence on the positive public health impact of the age 21 minimum legal drinking age in the United States". Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs. Supplement. 75 Suppl 17: 108–15. doi:10.15288/jsads.2014.75.108. PMID 24565317.
  4. Armstrong, Ken (30 December 1994). "Designated Driver A Good Idea Some Say Is Backfiring". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 3 March 2016.
  5. Rhone, Nedra (12 July 2001). "Cal State OKs Assault on Student Drinking". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 3 March 2016.
  6. Perry, Tony (1 July 1995). "AA Quietly Marks 60 Years of Deep Impact on Society". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 3 March 2016.
  7. Silverstein, Stuart (28 November 2014). "The alcohol industry doesn't want you to drink responsibly". Salon. Retrieved 3 March 2016.
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